Dear Editor,
On Saturday, September 23, 2023, something incredible took place in Guyana that did not happen when His Excellency Dr. Ali officially became the president of the country three years ago. And many including yours truly were baffled when it was announced that President Ali briefed the leader of the opposition, Mr. Aubrey Norton on the new threats to Guyana’s sovereignty from the Maduro regime in Venezuela. Despite Mr. Norton’s refusal to shake President Dr. Ali’s hand on more than one occasion, it did not bother His Excellency who cast aside partisan politics, put the country’s interest first and acted like a mature statesman and discussed with the leader of the opposition, Venezuela’s ominous warnings related to the auctioning of the oil blocks.
Frankly speaking, Maduro’s ill-conceived and baseless intimidatory tactics are meant to undermine Guyana’s sovereignty and its right to develop its resources to benefit its almost 800,000 citizens. However, at the United Nations annual meeting of Heads of States, a confident President Dr. Ali rebuffed the Maduro regime for its vile and foreboding threats to use force against Guyana.
President Dr. Ali did not only display statesmanship in communicating with the leader of the opposition who has been antagonistic towards him since he was sworn in as President on August 2, 2020, but he also exhibited courage and buoyancy by putting the country and its people ahead of self and discussed the menace posed by Venezuela. President Ali has steadfastly and resolutely maintained that the oil blocks are within Guyana’s legally defined and internationally recognized boundaries which were settled in the October 3, 1899, Arbitral Award. His position was supported by the Commonwealth of Nations, the United States, and our friendly neighbours in CARICOM and the Organization of American States, all of which have rejected Venezuela’s illicit threats and called on Caracas to respect international law as well as await the decision of the International Court of Justice. Instead of adhering to the advice of the United States and our neighbours, the Maduro regime is currently making plans to hold a national referendum on the border controversy.
In highlighting the new threats posed by the Maduro regime against Guyana, President Dr. Ali has done a brilliant job to amass immense support from our CARICOM and Latin American neighbours, the Commonwealth of nations, the United States and South America’s economic and military powerhouse Brazil.
In the face of the ominous threats from Venezuela, His Excellency has displayed quintessential grace and strength. Regardless of political affiliation we should support him in these challenging and difficult times.
Sincerely,
Asquith Rose