After the results of the elections, Mr. Sanders is now changing his tune

Dec 18, 2011 Letters

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Dear Editor,
I refer to an editorial note in the KN (Thursday, Dec 15) in which Mr. Ron Sanders sought to “correct” some statements I attributed to him in my Wednesday column. Readers need to know before I go on that Sanders didn’t correct my sentences on him in the Wednesday but on my quotations from two of his previous columns in the KN. Therefore it would be useful to juxtapose what Sanders has sought to clarify with the position he took in his column in KN last Sunday
First, Mr. Sanders observed that he never wrote about Guyana’ reclaiming its lost El Dorado. His column is titled; “El Dorado may be in sight at last.” So he didn’t use the word “reclaim.” But what is his point? The context remains.
And I would like to think that Sanders knows that context is everything in life. My purpose was to show that Sanders wrote in favour of the ruling party when he wrote his El Dorado column (Feb, 18, 11). Sanders did not dispute that. What he is contending is that he didn’t use the word “reclaim.” Alright I concede that but I will stick with my contention in that in saying that Guyana is in sight of El Dorado, the opinion can be interpreted to mean that the then ruling party was performing excellently on the economic front
Next Mr. Sanders explained (as carried in the editorial note) that he did not write that the ruling PPP will win the 2011 elections because of Mr. Jagdeo’s economic policies. Mr. Sanders seems to be obsessed with words rather that their meaning. If there is anything I learned from being a newspaper columnist is that the laws governing libel revolve around the meaning of words and sentences
Let us quote Mr. Sanders. In the El Dorado article he wrote; “If the economy continues on its upward trajectory, the country could become a magnet for nationals of other Caribbean countries, fulfilling its promise as the land of the future for Caricom…between 2006 and 2010, Guyana averaged economic growth of four percent – an enviable achievement among Caricom countries… a striking development in social terms is the steady increase in government expenditure directed at old age pensioners…” Mr. Sanders’ entire article is a glossy portrait of the Guyana economy. Unless one is devoid of the capacity to understand, such praise by extension is an acknowledgement of the excellent performance of the ruling party in government
The May 27th column of Sanders is captioned, “Guyana: Recovering its lost years.” It is yet another tribute to Guyana’s wonderful economic performance. Yet Mr. Sanders complains about my use of the term, “reclaim.” In a three part series titled “The politics of leadership: Guyana and its presidency,” Mr. Sanders wrote that; “The new President will inherit from Bharrat Jagdeo’s stewardship a country whose economic situation and social services are better than they have been for three decades… housing, medical facilities and education have all dramatically improved under Jagdeo.”
The entire series is a song of praise to the Guyana Government. Here is another quote; “Guyana’s recent advancement under Mr. Jagdeo has to be developed to provide tangible benefits…” Yet Mr. Sanders objects that I misquote him in saying that the PPP will win again because of Jagdeo’s economic policies. Well he is right. He didn’t use those words but he conveyed a meaning to that effect. Here now is the same Sanders writing after the November 2011 elections; “General elections in St. Lucia and Guyana have raised serious questions about the financing of campaigns and the unfair use of state resources by governing parties to gain an advantage over their opponents.” Yet this is the same Sanders that wrote on June 25 that; “the now disparate opposition parties –disunited internally and fragmented.”
Here is more of Mr. Sanders on the November 28 election; “This phenomenon is not unique to Guyana, in other parts of the Caribbean, the state owned media is increasingly controlled by ruling parties for party political propaganda and to deny opposition parties a voice but again it is noteworthy that despite government control of the media, the opposition parties in Guyana gave the ruling party a robust fight…it is a warning to all ruling parties that restricting democracy by muzzling state owned media will do them more harm than good…”
Mr. Sanders need to ask himself that after five columns this year in which he lavished excessive praise on Mr. Jagdeo’s economic achievements, the PPP had to resort to the illegal use of state resources to help finance its campaign. I stand unapologetically by the judgment I made in my Wednesday column that after the results of the elections, Mr. Sanders is now changing his tune
Frederick Kissoon

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