Whatever happened to the days when words like shame and honour meant something?

May 06, 2011 Letters

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Dear Editor,
I remember with some nostalgia the days when words like shame and honour meant something.  Children were taught to conduct themselves in a manner that would not bring shame or disgrace (dishonour) to their families.
Institutions would have their officers and members adhere to codes of conduct to ensure that their public images were not tarnished, or that no shameful act besmirched their good names. Recent events in our national life caused me to reflect on the days when ethics trumped expediency, and good manners and discipline were commonplace among the ruling class.
With the appointment of Mr. Donald Ramotar as Presidential Advisor, I wondered, “Is there no shame?  Is there no limit to this chief executive’s brazen and unethical behaviour?” Then I thought about the recipient of this appointment, and wondered if there was no shame on his part, for accepting what amounts to state sponsorship of his party’s political campaign.
Mr. Editor, the acceptance of this appointment raises serious questions about Mr. Ramotar’s judgment and moral clarity. Less than a month after being selected PPP presidential candidate, Mr. Ramotar accepted an advisory position to a “lame duck” Jagdeo, who presides over the most corrupt administration in the history of the Republic.  Mr. Editor, it is widely believed, even among former PNC critics, that the Office of the President is the most corrupt and morally compromised place in Guyana. Some have labeled it an incubator for both personal and public scandals. Why would a serious presidential ‘wannabe’ attach himself to such an operation? The question must be asked.  Is Mr. Ramotar his own man, or is he just doing what Jagdeo tells him to do? If we are to accept this appointment at face value, that this 12-year President needs Ramotar’s advice in the waning days of his presidency, then may we ask how much time will be spent advising and how much time campaigning? Also what mechanisms will be put in place to ensure transparency that the lines are not blurred, and that public funds and government resources are not used by the PPP presidential campaign?
Mr. Editor, how many advisers does this President need? And what kind of message are we sending to the public at large, including our youth? Where are the ethics? Where is the example? Is there no shame?
Thence to the President’s remarks to his New York supporters at the Tobago Club on Friday, April 29, 2011. Mr. Jagdeo told his audience that while other nations had faltered during the economic crisis, Guyana had prevailed, that we were building and growing.  He even opined that unlike many countries in the developed world that were cutting back on spending for higher education, his government had increased funding for the University of Guyana. In his remarks, Mr. Ramotar echoed the President, and touted the economic growth and development in Guyana. Is there no shame? Have Messrs. Jagdeo and Ramotar not seen the lines in Duke Street, the crowded departure lounge at the airport, and the country’s net migration rate? In 2011 according to the CIA Fact Book,
14.32 per thousand Guyanese will leave Guyana. That translates to approximately 10,024 per year, or 27 Guyanese citizens leaving our shores every day. Included in that number are 82% of our university graduates, and a hefty percentage of our trained teachers, nurses, electricians, plumbers and senior public servants – including PPP supporters. Mr. Editor, if things are as rosy in Guyana as portrayed by Ramotar and Jagdeo, why are these people leaving? This is a question that Ramotar has to answer.
Finally Mr. Editor, at the same function our President asked overseas based Guyanese to help the Government to locate “Tookie.” Seriously? I expected this from the President, but I was hoping for more from Mr.  Ramotar. This was Mr. Ramotar’s opportunity to lay out his vision for Guyana. I expected this opportunity would have been used to address more serious and immediate issues facing the nation. I wanted to hear what he was going to do about out-of-control government spending, inflation, GuySuCo, unemployment, money laundering, the brain drain, security and corruption, just to name a few.
I expected substance instead we got fluff and deceits. Mr. Ramotar wasted an opportunity to tell the expatriate community why he was best suited to be the next leader of Guyana.
Instead he stood before the audience and his leader, boasting and embellishing while a few blocks away at John F. Kennedy International Airport, another 27 Guyanese deplaned. Is there no shame?
Mark Archer

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