Two rotten peas in the same pod

Sep 26, 2011 Letters

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Dear Editor,
Almost every day in the independent media, there are letters written by Malcolm Harripaul and Mark Archer, attacking the PPP/C Administration while at the same time, praising the candidacy of APNU Presidential candidate, retired GDF Brigadier, David Granger.
I have no problem with the lies and distortion they propagate, for everyone enjoys free speech in Guyana. But I believe it is imperative for young people and more so, the voters in general, to understand the characters and motives of the persons that Granger has as his public relations propagandists.
One is more likely to believe a person of impeccable character, as opposed to someone with any type of baggage.
Former GDF officer, Malcolm Harripaul, is a man with a mission. He is determined to get even with President Jagdeo for ruining his ambitions years ago when he was working at Customs and Excise. The then Finance Minister Bharrat Jagdeo had, in my opinion, duly fired him.
But this is not what his friend Freddie Kissoon wants you to believe. For in his article published in Kaieteur News on November 17, 2010, Kissoon gave the impression that Harripaul was fired because Jagdeo warned him not to invite Kissoon to swim in the Castellani swimming pool.
He wrote, “For some reason, Jagdeo has always been terrified of Harripaul when the latter worked at Customs and Excise and Jagdeo was his boss as Deputy Finance Minister.
Harripaul refused to accept Jagdeo’s demand and dragged me out of my home to swim with the intention of cussing down Jagdeo if he showed up.
I declined with the stern warning to Harripaul that he would be dismissed. I explained to Harripaul that I would demand my right to swim by asking for President Jagan’s permission. I wrote Jagan and never heard from him. This was the second time I was evicted from a swimming pool, the first being Colgrain, under the PNC Government. Months after, Harripaul was fired.”
As usual, Freedie Kissoon deliberately mislead his readers, painting his friend Harripaul as a victim. But in reality, Malcolm Harripaul was fired by Bharrat Jagdeo for much more serious issues than swimming pool permission, and he will never forget that.
The other Granger propagandist, Mark Archer, another former GDF soldier, I know isn’t a Saint either. Maybe, in time, some of his army buddies could share their views on this.
Malcolm Harripaul and Mark Archer are two rotten peas in the same pod. These are the characters that David Granger surrounds himself with, who are essentially running his Presidential campaign. No wonder the other members that make up APNU are very nervous of the active role that ex-GDF soldiers are playing in his camp.
PPP/C Presidential Candidate, Donald Ramotar, should also be nervous about this, for in his address to his former army comrades on May 1, Granger asked them to be “vigilant” and be present at polling places. This request evokes painful memories of the 1973 seizure of ballot boxes by the GDF, that gave the PNC a two-thirds majority in Parliament. The same rigged election that the then former Political Liaison Officer to Forbes Burnham claims he knew nothing about.
Harripaul and Archer would do themselves some good if they acknowledge some of the ongoing progress in Guyana, rather than being so critical of everything the government does.
They complain about government discriminating against Guyanese of African descent, yet whenever government appoints an Afro-Guyanese to high office, the opposition calls the appointee ‘house-boy’ and other derogatory names.
They complain about the lack of accountability in government, yet it is the PPP/C who re-introduced the Auditor-General’s reports; Parliamentary oversight bodies; the Integrity Commission; an open bidding system for contracts that is open to public scrutiny; and stakeholders’ input and oversight in practically all national development projects.
They criticize Jagdeo for delays in passing the Freedom of Information Act, and condemned the Access of Information Bill legislation when it was finally tabled in Parliament to promote transparency and accountability in the workings of the government and public authorities. Yet they failed to give the PPP/C credit despite the opposition’s continued boycott in an attempt to railroad this bill and make Jagdeo look bad.
Hardly a day goes by without the announcement of some new developmental project somewhere in Guyana, yet if you believe the lies and misinformation spewed by Granger’s PR officers, the PPP/C government has done absolutely nothing for the Guyanese people.
The Jagdeo Administration is not without fault. Many projects could have been done better at a lower cost to taxpayers. But the President can’t be blamed for every wrong that goes on in Guyana.
Bharrat Jagdeo can be proud of his achievements and the solid economic foundation he will be leaving to his successor, and he rightly deserves much credit for this.
The development of Guyana is a work in progress and mistakes will be made. But Guyanese will be much better off with Donald Ramotar at the helm to get rid of all the deadwood and to continue the growth we’re now beginning to enjoy, rather than to elect the silver-hair fox to guard the chicken coop.
Harry Gill

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