Guyanese will soon determine who has no place in public life

Oct 18, 2010 Letters

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Dear Editor,
I wish to refer to Mr. Vijay P. Kumar’s letter published in the Kaieteur News, under the caption, “Granger has no place in public life”.
From the tone, and direction of the letter it is clear that the PPP/C and their contractors are hoping to invoke the wrath of fear on a certain section of Guyanese, in the hope that these citizens vote blindly for the Cup. I hope Bishop Juan Edghill and the Ethnic Relations Commission are taking copious notes in order to take action.
Since Retired Brigadier David Granger announced that he is interested in becoming the PNCR’s presidential candidate the PPP/C and their friends went into their ‘dirt frenzy mode’. It began with a letter by a PPP/C activist Jinnah Rahman, who barefacedly accused the Brigadier for some ballot box fiasco and attempted to connect him with the death of two young men. Immediately, after his concocted lies and raw propaganda Granger fired back.
Drawing on his brilliant history base and knowledge of the facts, he convinced every Guyanese that these dirt throwers were merely what they were.
The Brigadier, though not the Commander at the time of the fiasco in question, informed all of where he was at the time of the 1973 elections, and described the situation surrounding it. He reminded Guyanese that an inquiry was done into the death of those two young men and encouraged all to go to the archives and read the report.
However, understanding that there is no dirt that can be thrown and stuck on Mr. Granger, the PPP/C, bent on advancing a theory linked to race and prejudice, prepared a mere repetition of Jinnah’s letter, this time with a new name, Vijay Kumar. Again the issue of the 1973 elections and the death of these two young men were thrown at Granger. Yes, after 37 years the PPP/C comes to discredit and throw dirt at this man of unquestionable integrity and noble character.
They fail, however, to understand that 37 years ago, the majority of the 2011 voters were not yet born, and therefore, are least interested in an incident which is being inquired into.
Further, assuming that the Jinnah/ PPP/C tale is true why didn’t President Jagdeo preach his “forget the past”, to his comrades and admonish them to “look to the future” don’t forget this incident is now dug up after 37 years. Are we living in the same country, or is it that some people’s memories are expected to be short, while others are encouraged to “rear and stack false hate”.
The President admonished Buxtonians to forget their recent past, of about 3-4 years, after branding the village a criminal one, but today he tells Jinnah, Vijay and the PPP/C to harp on some tale that happened 37 years ago and to pin it on the Brigadier, albeit, there was an enquiry and report on that matter.
I want to join with Mr. Basil Williams to say that Guyanese people are not as stupid as the President and the PPP/C think we are; we the people are capable of reading between the lines.
However, if the PPP/C is barefaced enough to play this role they must know that the people of Guyana and the PNCR will be more than willing to engage them. For starters, we need not go back 37 years and beyond, when the PPP/C sabotaged almost every economic project of the PNC government.
We need not go back 40 plus years and talk about that notorious “Son Chapman Bombing” orchestrated by the PPP/C and which killed some 40 odd Lindeners and other Guyanese. No, my friends we need not go way back there when the pain, fear and grief of the recent past are less than a decade away.
The PPP/C must know that the majority of the current voters witnessed the “infamous Gajraj era”, they witnessed the execution of Ronald Waddle, they witnessed the slaughter of Minister Satadeo Sawh and his siblings; they will not forget the back to back massacres which took place at Lusignan and Bartica, and yes the raw stench of the Lindo Creek slaughter is fresh in their minds. Yes, they remember the brutal murder of Dweive Kant Ramdass by our own coast guards.
The PPP/C and their friends must know that Guyanese have not forgotten Donna Herod, who was slain in the presence of her babies whom she used her body to shield from flying bullets; we have not forgotten Donna Mckinnon, another Buxtonian, who was shot dead in the empty lot adjacent to Freedom House; we have not forgotten those helpless four who were shot dead, point blank, at the Office of the President.
We cannot forget Shaka Blair who was murdered by Gajraj’s phantom gang, in his bed in the presence of his wife and young children.
Mr. Kumar we just cannot forget these recent atrocities, no we cannot forget the “period of human slaughter”, which griped us a few years ago; a period where the executed, slaughtered, slain, and murdered turned up almost every day in groups, pairs or alone.
That period, which we seem to be fast approaching again, where every man, woman, and child was a target of a missed bullet.
While the 1973 ballot box incident, and the death of those two Guyanese were investigated into, we are still awaiting an inquiry into the atrocities alluded to. I read a recent plead by the brother-in-law of the late Minister Sawh, asking for an investigation into the slaying of his family. I have not yet heard any positive movement on that matter; what is there to hide, Mr. Kumar?
We claim that the Burnham/ PNC period of governance was such a dictatorial one but yet we had an inquiry into the killings of the young men during that 1973 incident you referred to. Here even if justice was not done, it “appeared to have been done”.
But we have a situation today, in this “democracy”, you tell us brought on by the 1992 election, the powers that be care not whether justice is not even appeared to have been done, you do the analysis and say to me which of the two periods of governance can be deemed more responsive, fair and democratic.
Since Kumar seems to know who is culpable and who should be removed from public life, I am sure that he will find that the PPP/C’s culpability of the barrage of senseless killings is, to use his words, beyond dispute.
Where was Kumar, and others when then Home Affairs Minister, Ronald Gajraj stood in the open parliament and in an emphatic manner, told the Guyanese people that he’ll make no apologies for being in contact with criminals.
He asserted that he will do it again if he has to; with his open display of arrogance the PPP/C side of the house gave a resounding and encouraging applause.
If the PPP/C truly wants to keep this election campaign above board they must encourage issue based discussions or dialogues, since to go back in time to use incidents to stir up unnecessary hate can be counterproductive, with no one benefiting in the end.
However, if they decide that they will employ the “back in time” dirty campaigning I would caution them that it will not be in their interest. PNCR is more that prepare to respond to them, we know the facts!
Before I conclude, allow me to make this most critical observation in Kumar’s letter; the gentleman claimed that the PPP won every elections ever held in Guyana, he was so confident in stating his tale that he had the audacity to include in that list the 1997 elections.
But the truth is the youngest child in this country would know that the only national elections in Guyana that was vitiated or declared null and void by a court of law was that notoriously known, 1997 elections.
Mr. Kumar that is not 37 years ago so you would remember that, come on Sir, we are not that foolish.
The citizens of this country will soon determine who has no place in public life.
Lurlene Nestor

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