Latest update May 25th, 2026 12:35 AM
It’s high time for a much better Guyana
DEAR EDITOR,
After returning to power in 1992 and ruling for twelve continuous years, the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) on October 5th 2004 issued a press release titled, “Celebrate the return of democracy.” In the document, the party quoted Dr. Cheddi Jagan, “… progress would never be sustainable without political democracy … and while democracy was not everything, without it we would have nothing.”
The party claimed that it was the lack of democracy that had devastated the Guyanese economy pre-1992. The press statement also said, “… we can recall the state of disrepair of our schools, hospitals … and the deplorable conditions of our roads. Many people feared to speak their minds in groups or publicly. The violation of our privacy in the tampering of mail and the tapping of our phones.…”
Fast forward to September 2011, Kaieteur News’ headline on September 7th, “Democracy and the rule of law in Guyana is at its lowest ebb since 2006 – US Embassy.”
Two years prior in the press statement in 2004, the PPP was celebrating “a return to democracy”. Twenty-four months later, United States diplomats were telling a different story. “There is a consensus among the International Donor Community Observers, that democracy and the rule of law in Guyana is at its lowest ebb….” “This is a country where opposition is marginalized and rule of law is selectively applied.” “The overall picture is of a government, tightening control and misusing the rule of law, while saying all the “right” words and smiling nicely for the cameras.”
We all know what happened, for we had a front row seat. We saw the promise of a better Guyana squandered, goodwill rewarded with disrespect, and a party that complained about PNC paramountcy become an elected dictatorship, accountable to no one.
Today, many of the supporters and several of the party stalwarts who celebrated in 1992, are having profound buyers’ remorse. As no less a commentator than Mr. Jinnah Rahman so eloquently put it in his letter to Kaieteur News of September 7th, 2011, “A united opposition that puts Guyana first can win a landslide at the polls”.
Mr. Rahman wrote, “We must all accept that the PPP is not the party that we knew and grew up in. Under Jagdeo and Ramotar, there have been changes that dramatically diluted the pristine policies and programmes of the party … the fellows who inherited power through the hard work that we did are unable to manage the country.”
The current leadership of the PPP, a party that was built as a party of the working man and woman has walked away from its base, and has now firmly embraced blatant cronyism. Hardworking citizens labour for meager but highly taxed wages, while the President, cabinet ministers, leadership cronies and other big wigs enjoy tax-free status. Hardworking citizens struggle with the 16% VAT and 33% PAYE, while the prices of basic foodstuff skyrocket every day and job opportunities are non-existent.
This administration has sent more people to the poor homes and the ranks of the army of the jobless than any other in the history of our republic. From GuySuCo, the public service, Linmine, Bermine, the GDF, GPF, all of these traditional sources of employment have been drastically strangled and downsized.
The traditional symbol of the PPP, the cup, is now a golden chalice to be sipped from only by the rich and well connected. PPP rank and file members of the party have been neglected and disrespected.
Longtime PPP supporters, from all walks of life, in and out of Guyana, have been looking at how the current PPP leadership has destroyed what was already a fragile democracy, looking at how they have set us one against another, and have been asking themselves if the PPP is still their party. Many of them already know the answer.
It’s high time for a much better Guyana. I say let’s sweep them out!
Mark Archer
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