Dear Editor,
It is with profound sadness that the New York PNCR Group pays special tribute to the late Party stalwart, Oscar Eleazar Clarke, CCH. Our party has lost a giant of a leader. In the words of Kipling, “He walked with Kings and Queens, but never lost the common touch.” He was a man of the people who remained humble despite the multiplicity of important offices he held during his more than five decades of service to his beloved Guyana.
Comrade Clarke’s illustrious career as General Secretary of the People’s National Congress, spanned the tenures of three-Party Leaders – Former Presidents’ Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham, O.E., President Hugh Desmond Hoyte, S.C, and President David Arthur Granger, M.S.M, M.S.S. This was indeed testament to his astuteness as a leader, his political acumen and a trusted confidant of three different party leaders. In fact, when he retired as General Secretary of the party on June 30th 2017, he was hailed as a stalwart who came through the ranks and served the party with vigor and distinction.
Starting in the Young Socialist Movement (YSM), the youth arm of the party, Clarke became a Member of Parliament and subsequently served as Parliamentary Secretary in 1965 and as Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly from January 1, 1969 to December 31, 1969. His first stint as General Secretary of the PNC began on December 1, 1968. In his multi-faceted career, this outstanding Guyanese patriot served as Minister of State, Minister of Regional Development, Minister of Home Affairs and Guyana’s High Commissioner to Zambia and the Front-Line States as well as Ambassador to the Republic of Cuba.
It is significant to note, that Cde. Clarke’s appointment as Ambassador to the Front-Line States, was very strategic. It was in keeping with Guyana’s commitment to the liberation movement and the dismantling of apartheid in South Africa in the 1970’s and 80’s. The Frontline States comprised Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia). Oscar Clarke played a pivotal role in promoting Guyana’s leadership in the Anti-Apartheid Movement in the Caribbean and globally. Through the efforts of the Front-Line States and the Non-Aligned Movement, apartheid was dismantled and Nelson Mandela became President of South Africa in 1994.
It is also significant to note that Oscar Clarke’s death coincides with Guyana 58th Anniversary of Independence. When Guyana gained its Independence on May, 26, 1966, Oscar Clarke would have already entered the hallowed halls of Parliament as a Parliamentary Secretary. The New York PNCR Group salutes this great son of the soil and looks forward to a fitting tribute being paid by the National Assembly of Guyana, in recognition of the twenty-one (21) years of dedicated service by Oscar Eleazar Clarke, to this nation, as a Member of Parliament. We extend deepest sympathy to his wife and children as well as other relatives and friends. May his soul rest in eternal peace and his memory cherished forever.
Sincerely,
Feola Murray
