Leaders would always come under the gun

Sep 19, 2010 Features / Columnists, My Column

---

By Adam Harris

It must be tough being a leader, and tougher still to lead a country that is as divided as Guyana. In the first place, leaders are responsible for everything that happens, whether they sanctioned it or not. They are expected to fix every wrong, whether they presided over the situation that gave rise to the wrong or not.
I have been a leader from time to time and when things were going well there were people who rose to the front and continued some of the things I did. It was a case of seeking credit for whatever achievements I managed to wrangle.
For example, there were the days when I edited New Nation, the political organ of the People’s National Congress. Producing that paper every week without adequate staff was most tedious. People submitted their contributions which in their eyes were masterpieces but to me, were nothing but drivel. I used my editorial judgement and discarded them.
Lo and behold. These people ranted and raved. They spoke to the political leader about my attempt to sabotage the newspaper because I would discard valuable material. Of course I would be called on to justify my action and never being at a loss to explain any decision I took I did so. It was left to the political leader to pacify the irate writer.
The day came when some of those who stepped forward to get into the spotlight and decided that they could do a better job without accepting the responsibility. I simply lost my cool and moved on. The rest is history.
It was the same when I headed the Guyana Chronicle. The elections of 1992 came. At the same time the Chronicle was the leading newspaper in the land. Needless to say, the new political leaders decided that whatever I was doing could have been done by other of their acolytes. I moved on. It is no secret that the Chronicle hardly ever reaches the newsstands these days.
These days I edit this newspaper, and I must admit that while I wish someone would step up so that I could relax since I am not getting any younger, there is no candidate. This newspaper is the leading newspaper in the land, and there is the temptation at times for the owners to push the newspaper even further. This is understood.
Of course there are times when my views and those of the owner do not coincide so there are often heated discussions. I must say that compromises are the order of the day and the newspaper continues to lead at the newsstands.
I have seen challenges to other leaders, none more than those to the leader of the People’s National Congress Reform. Mr. Robert Corbin came at a most difficult time. The party had lost three elections in a row, if one were to count the local government elections. The late Desmond Hoyte had run afoul of some stalwarts and he was not hesitant to give them the right to move on, certainly not to stay within his party to cause disruptions.
It was left to Corbin to woo these people at the behest of those members who were not too happy with the decisions that the late Desmond Hoyte had made. He also had to confront the powers that be. He tried but the perception was that he was outplayed at every turn. His supporters were most unhappy but the loyal few insisted that a political leader was for life. The others felt that as is the case in any other part of the world, when leaders fail they should step down and let others take up the fight.
Then there is Bharrat Jagdeo, a young and brilliant man who has managed to achieve much on the international scene. He managed debt write-offs, was entrusted with leading the economic pursuits of the Caribbean Community and Common Market.
Given Guyana’s agricultural dominance in the region, President Jagdeo is also responsible with the food security of the region. But it is at home that he has had his challenges. He has been accused of micro-managing, a charge fuelled by his own Ministers who feel that they could do what the President appointed them to do but which he takes over from time to time.
The attacks were enough to make a big man cry. Guyanese are never at a loss for words to describe micro managers, and they heaped these on President Jagdeo. I remember raising this issue with him and he said that when things go wrong people blame him and when they go well they say that they could have done better. I understood.
What I could not understand was his reluctance to grant concessions to his opponents. A strong leader is never afraid of challenges and he must certainly take criticisms in his stride. I knew Forbes Burnham and I knew that he was most severely criticized. Indeed he would get angry but he never displayed that anger to his critics because he knew that to show anger was to let the critics know that they were getting to him.
It was the same with Desmond Hoyte. He knew that he had his critics, not least among them people like the late David de Caires, the late Fr. Andrew Morrison, Dr. Nanda Kishore Gopaul, Dr Yesu Persaud and so many others. Yet when the time came for his government to relinquish its hold on the national newspaper industry, he was quick to grant permission, and so did Stabroek News enter the marketplace.
Looking at the situation today, I am not sure that President Jagdeo would grant such an opening to a critic. If that were so, he would open the radio waves to others to allow for private radio stations. He would also have allowed Christopher Ram his say on Thursday.
Granting concessions can never be considered a sign of weakness. The corollary is that shutting down a critic is never a sign of strength. It has been written that President Jagdeo could have let Mr. Ram have his say and simply ignore the question. He could not have been accused of being a dictator.
There will always be the critics. President Jagdeo will always be blamed for the over-priced contracts and ignored for those contracts that fall within the range of the project. He will be criticized for the corrupt practices adopted by people in the public sector and for not insisting on prosecutions. He is the leader and the man who pulls the purse strings.
Indeed, he has said that often when people report corrupt practices these people are reluctant to give evidence in the courts; they want to remain incognito. If he forces the issue he would be seen as a dictator.
But the bottom line is that President Jagdeo would have to put on a public face, regardless of how angered he becomes in the face of criticisms. After all, he is a leader and those things come with the territory.

---

---