Is Ramotar pressing the restart button on the Jagdeo’s presidency?

Jun 02, 2011 Letters

Dear Editor,
Mr. Donald Ramotar’s recent presentation to the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA), rather than succeed in establishing himself as his own man with his own ideas and policies, seems instead to be pressing the restart button on the failed Jagdeo’s presidency. Guyana needs this like it needs a hole in the head.
While Mr. Ramotar argued that Guyana has probably the lowest VAT rate, 16%, in the region with places like the UK up to 20%, he may have deliberately left out an embarrassing fact, and that is most Guyanese live below the poverty line, while most Europeans do not. He also told the GMSA that he did not believe VAT to be a burden on the populace. Are we now to believe that 16% VAT will remain intact should he become Guyana’s next president?
Ramotar told the attendees that steps are now being taken to modernize the sugar industry and he mentioned the Skeldon factory, saying “we have problems there…” No, Mr. Ramotar, a problem is when one forgets the chicken in the oven and burns everyone’s lunch in the process, a US$200 million White Elephant is a national disaster of historical proportions that will have debilitating repercussions well into Guyana’s future.
And since you were on the Board of GuySuCo, it would be nice if you would apologise to the sugar workers and to the Guyanese people, and while you’re at it, please explain to Guyanese why we should now place Guyana into your hands, when you got Skeldon so disastrously wrong.
Newspaper reports: “Ramotar also told the gathering that should he be elected president, local government elections would be held early in 2012…”
We’ve all heard that one before by the PPP, haven’t we, Mr. Ramotar, but no local government elections yet so sorry, we don’t believe you.
Newspapers reports: “Ramotar said that he will create the SWAT team to deal with criminals though he stressed “not a team like those of the past.”
Again, like Jagdeo, Ramotar is not talking of accepting England’s offer to train personnel while upgrading and truly professionalise the security and crime fighting systems in Guyana. Instead he is advocating more of the same of the Jagdeo’s failed policies therefore more heinous crimes committed against the law-abiding Guyanese people, more extra-judicial killings to be expected, and more degradation of whatever democracy Guyana has left, because as we all know, once that political man-eating beast gets let loosed upon the population, there is no controlling it anymore. We’ve seen all of this before.
SN: “Ramotar also said yesterday that there is a need to look at the country’s migration policy…”
What does he mean by that? Is he going to restrict migration, restrict travel by Guyanese, out of Guyana, is this even constitutional……?
There are too many concerns that have to be addressed and since the time of the presentation to the GMSA does not allow much room to clarify, I am calling on the AFC, the party I am proud to support, and the other opposition parties, to demand a debate with Donald Ramotar and have him clarify all these areas of concerns, answer all these questions, have his views challenged and tested by the other two presidential candidates.
We do not need to have Ramotar talking down to Guyanese, which is what the one-man PPP show has been doing these past umpteen years. We have many questions, oceans of well founded concerns and yes, we do fear Jagdeo part 2 so we need to have our concerns addressed well in advance of elections 2011.
Let’s have those debates now!
Roxanne De Cruiz

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