Dear Editor
Many of our opposition politicians in Guyana have had a taste of governance. Given the current social and political dilemmas we are faced with, our opposition politicians have not shifted gear to effectively be a part of addressing the social ills plaguing the country. This is an indictment on them given the fact that the dictatorship is thriving on the national confusion which serves as a distraction to their corrupt practices. It is no longer enough, given our unique circumstances, for our national vanguard and political defenders to prostrate in Parliament and reach the people via social media to remind them of the social catastrophe, they are already aware of, that is suffocating the nation.
It is a dastardly act by our opposition to stop there while the people of Guyana, primarily their supporters, feel the brunt of the decadent life in our country. Do they confidently visit the crime hotspots and meet with those communities to get a firsthand report of why the violence is happening? Do they visit the homes of the families of victims of gun and knife attacks much of which ends in fatalities? Or this required intervention is only seen when an election is upon us? We live in a Guyana where the Opposition has no say or influence on the police; a Guyana where opposition politicians are afraid and most times reluctant to confront the rut that is eating away at the very fabric of society. They are desperate for five years in office but are horrified at the prospect of seventy two hours on the bench; a tiny price to pay in the sojourn towards liberating our people from tyranny.
There is a female politician who has a burning ambition to lead Guyana but has a particular disdain for the ordinary working man and woman. Even when she goes on the ground for the cameras to catch her, so restless and out of place is she, that she disappears faster than she appears. People are beginning to observe her behaviour more and more and are talking. She believes it is enough to dress the dress, talk the talk and look good. She is not alone in that world of ‘fronting’. Had it not been for activists, talk show hosts, journalists sympathetic to our cause and grassroots women and men ready to take the fight to the regime on a daily basis, I doubt whether our supporters would have looked to our opposition with hope. Our Shadow Ministers must now come out of the shadows and be ever present where there are problems affecting those they are elected to represent.
Is my good friend Devin Sears still a Member of Parliament? Every day the people of Linden can see Nigel London. How much is Devin getting a month in salary? London gets nothing and is working on behalf of the people as if his reward will be the presidency. When the List of Candidates for National Elections are placed on lantern post across the country, our supporters must see the faces of Kidackie Amsterdam, Mark Benschop, Gordon Moseley, Glen Lall, Nigel London, our freedom fighter sister who was charged for treason (why is her name not coming to me at the moment?), and others who are not elected politicians and are fighting the struggle daily. Readers can add the names of others they wish to see lead them nationally. I have to give respect to MP Annette Ferguson. She has up the ante and is tireless in the fight to see regime change.
Sincerely,
Norman Browne
