Guyana’s shame is no longer subtle. No longer can we hide in the shadows wearing masks masquerading as what we are trying to be as a country. The secret is out that danger lurks here. The threats are not imagined on these fragile grounds we stand.
There has been no period of absolute peace and harmony in Guyana. For even in our most peaceful times, the disgruntled would let their murmurs and shouts be heard. The politics that has choked us since independence has stupefied too many of us and has allowed us to be in a constant state of divide while our conquering continues. Though the hands of our past colonisers may have appeared to be removed from our necks when we raised our flag, the seeds they planted blossomed and still bloom and we are culpable in our own undoing.
How can we feel at peace when the breakdown of law and order is evident? Slowly creeping up on us are crimes like kidnappings. We shudder when we imagine where Guyana’s missing people may be. Dark holes where secrets are buried, we may never know. We shudder to think what a society like ours will look like if there is no intervention to stop this.
It is becoming more evident that we the people cannot trust those who are supposed to have our best interests at heart and protect us. Can we trust our government when they tell us to foster peace and to stop the back biting when their actions may disturb the peace and fuel the back biting? They have failed to bring peace to the collective, failed to alleviate poverty for those sinking while they watch a minority fly, failed to reduce crime, and failed to make us all feel safe, valued and seen. But we the people simply watch, worry, and do nothing about these injuries to our state of being.
Can we trust our opposition when they seldomly fight or stand, but instead speak quietly, occasional outrage like we are not fighting for this land every day. They seem like sheep waiting for wolves.
Can we trust that law and order will be maintained when the Guyana Police Force whose mission is to serve all citizens and communities of Guyana in a professional, pro-active, and accountable manner seems to be falling apart with shocking allegations about corruption and crimes against the people of this country?
The signs are creeping up on us, but what are we the people waiting for? Where is our courage? Where is our care for the Guyana our children will inherit? Where is our love for this country when we will sit quietly and let corruption grow and dangers foster?
The signs of our decline manifest in ways like an assistant police commissioner having over two hundred charges for fraud, money laundering and larceny. They manifest like allegations about how money is being stolen from the people to enrich family and friends of the government. They manifest when there are scandals about various ministries. The promise of a hundred thousand dollars is supposed to soothe our worries, dry our tears, and fill the bellies of those who are starving.
The signs are evident. There are wanted bulletins for those accused of being involved in the disappearance of young men. Kidnappings on Main Street and in Giftland Mall parking lot are events we should not take lightly. We cannot simply watch and accept that criminals will stand in our faces in broad daylight, be caught on cameras and threaten our peace.
What do we do when some of those who are supposed to serve and protect us are the monsters we should fear? How can there be allegations that members of the Guyana Police Force were so emboldened to kidnap a man from Giftland Mall parking lot, take him to his home, rob him and return the next day driving a police vehicle to further terrorise him? This says to us that they believe that they can get away with their crimes. But perhaps they have always been getting away with crimes. A few years ago, a friend of mine was robbed, and it was policemen who had done it. It is not unusual to hear that if one wants to get away with criminal activities, they should join the police force.
Citizens of this nation we must really think about what could happen in this society if this train is allowed to continue to destruction. We must really think about what will happen if it is sorrows that are allowed to drive on the many new roads and misery that stays in the hotels like even the ones that are being built in green spaces. We the people must be able to breathe in this country even though they would prefer for the majority to remain muzzled. We must be able to live in this country and not fear. Increased crime should not be our destiny. Chaos should not be inevitable because of a breakdown of the norms and rules in this society. The prisons in which we do not trust each other or stand for our collective good should not exist. Our people should not be threatened with starvation and other crises detrimental to their wellbeing.
