Latest update April 14th, 2026 12:38 AM
Lumumba rejects house slave label
Dear Editor,
On October 24, 2011 my good friend and Brother Nigel Hughes issued a response to statements made by His Excellency Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo. Mr. Hughes emphasised, then, that he was a Guyanese and a proud descendant from a long line of field slaves.
I am in no way objecting to Mr. Hughes being proud of his ancestry. However, I am uneasy with the context in which he referred to his past.
In essence, I am forced to believe Mr. Hughes is clearly indicating that only field slaves or their descendants would oppose this Government and those who did not, which would include the majority of the African population and the African members of the Government, can be deemed as house slaves.
He has implied that house slaves have characteristics to follow the directives of their masters and cannot articulate the interest of Afro-Guyanese.
Should my interpretation be correct, I would have no other choice but to ask Bro. Nigel to clarify his intention by providing the historical role of the black middle class from the days when Guyana was a colony to when the same middle class was subjugated by the PNC and Forbes Burnham.
I would further emphasise that the likes of myself, Prime Minister Hinds, Dr. Roger Luncheon, Min. Clement Rohee, Hon. Dr. Jennifer Westford, Min. Robeson Benn, Min. Jennifer Webster, the Commissioner of Police, Henry Greene; Chief of Staff, Gary Best, Fire Chief, Marlon Gentle, Director of Prisons, Dale Erskine, the various Permanent Secretaries, Ex Minister Henry Jeffrey cannot be seen in the context of timid Negroes.
Note: The men and women I mentioned are of persons of quality and have access to power and the authority to implement Government policy without fear of being reprimanded.
Odinga Lumumba
Presidential Advisor on Community Development
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