Guyana needs a caring, democratic and pro-working class government

Dec 17, 2012 Letters

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Dear Editor,
Being the bigger person in politics not only takes a big effort and wisdom but commonsense as well.  Who won the most votes in the 2011 elections? The PPP won the most votes and that victory ought to have empowered them with some responsibilities.  They have to take the responsibility to stop the bickering over the Rohee affair and make the first move towards cooperation if Guyana is to progress and the people’s business attended to adequately.  But President Ramotar’s comments that the “…opposition missed a golden opportunity to work with the Government” are quite revealing and troubling and makes it is absolutely clear to us that he does not fully understand his job description. Further, by making the false claim to the international community that the majority opposition is threatening parliamentary democracy in Guyana undermines the democratic process and is most likely to impede political cooperation between the minority PPP government and the majority opposition. For the PPP cabal to say that the majority opposition is threatening democracy in Parliament is beyond silly. Such callous statements have driven a wedge between the minority PPP regime and the majority opposition. It also indicates to us that Mr. Ramotar continues to follow his immediate predecessor which makes him a follower and not a leader..
The duty of the largest political force is to make the first move towards cooperation.  But the PPP will have none of that; rather they have passed the responsibility to the AFC to fill the leadership vacuum that exists in Guyana.  The presumptive presidential Candidate Mr. Moses Nagamootoo’s positive statement that the “the time to talk is NOW” and his echo of the former leader of the AFC, Mr. Trotman’s comments that “The WAR is over” were quite refreshing. These sober remarks indicate that the AFC is willing to make the necessary sacrifice on behalf of the people and is prepared to lead in the interest of the poor and the working class.
The War can however only be over when the PPP “dogs of war” are pulled off the streets and the parliamentary opposition has equal access to the state-owned media—NCN, Chronicle and GINA.  The PPP cannot continue attacking the AFC leaders morning, noon and night and then in the next breath telling them they missed a golden opportunity?  That Jekyll and Hyde behavior belongs to a different regime from a different era.
With President Ramotar caught in the sleep march to follow such a low standard of behavior, there is no golden opportunity to be had; rather there is an opportunity to play with mud and we know who is very comfortable in the mud. Therefore, we plead with the advisors and supporters of President Ramotar to please encourage him to be his own man and stop being a puppet. Great things will only happen to Guyana if he understands that there is a serious political, economic and social crisis in the country and it will only be resolved if he accepts the proposition that the “WAR is over and the time for talk is NOW.” The people are fed-up with this flip-flop cabal and their wishy-washy programs that seem to benefit only themselves, their friends and relatives.
The first thing that has to be done to heal the wounds between the minority government and the majority opposition is for the President to reconvene the tripartite meeting between the PPP and the majority parliamentary opposition and widen that meeting to include some independent observers who have ZERO vested interest in politics, government or the opposition but whose only goal is to strive for the spiritual, economic and social development and prosperity of all Guyanese.
Therefore, we call on Mr. Ramotar to invite Bishop, the Rt. Reverend Cornell Moses from the Anglican Church, Swami Aksharnanda from the Hindi faith and Haseeb Yusuf, President of the Guyana Islamic Trust to the tripartite meetings. We believe that these men of the cloth with their talents would add credibility to the tripartite talks and restore confidence and trust in the people that the government is once again working on their behalf.
We want President Ramotar to succeed. But he must be prepared to make some drastic changes, perhaps revolutionary in nature, which in the end will benefit the people especially the poor and the working class. The PPP cabal can no longer continue their selfish and greedy ways of governance; they have to be selfless in order to make the following breathtaking changes:
– Establish the Public Procurement Commission, Anti-Corruption Agency, Judicial Commission, the Ombudsman, etc;
– Allow equal access of the state media by all parliamentary parties.
– Provide a 10% across the board salary increase for teachers, nurses, public servants, security forces, sugar workers and other employees of the state;
– Provide electricity which has been denied to the residents of No. 30 Village on West Coast Berbice.
– Reduce VAT by 2%;
– Increase old age pension from the meager monthly amount of $10,000 to $15,000 immediately;
– Reduce the toll on the Berbice River Bridge for motor cars, mini-buses and small trucks from $2,200 to $1,000 per crossing.
We believe that the country will not prosper unless these changes are made and the resources of the state are redistributed in a more fair and equitable manner to benefit the most vulnerable, children, the elderly and the poor and the working class.
These policy actions will give the minority PPP regime the chance to be viewed as a mature and more caring party.
Dr. Asquith Rose and Harish S. Singh

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