Granger has remained a sleeping and a toothless Jaguar for too long

May 06, 2013 Letters

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Dear Editor,
By any measure, Guyana should have been a very prosperous country because of its vast assets in natural resources and its skilled, qualified and talented personnel, but the continuous deterioration of the country in all aspects of life has been a major concern to many who love their country and want to make it a success. We grew up in a country that focused on love, dignity, integrity, truthfulness, respect for one another, caring and sharing with each other. There was also respect for the country, institutions, family life, the elderly, the youth, the church and the leaders of the country. Hiring and promotions of government officials were based more on qualifications and experience and not on political affiliations and race.  This hardly exists today, thanks to the corrupt, reckless and immoral Jagdeo/Ramotar cabal who did absolutely nothing to preserve these values but everything to destroy them as well as the historical buildings. Under the PPP regime, Georgetown has become the dumping ground for garbage and waste; homelessness and begging have increased significantly as evident in the streets. UG and the entire educational system have failed our children, the public hospitals are in total shambles, and so is the nation’s drainage and irrigation system with its blocked kokers. The end result of the latter is that the slightest rainfall has led to floods in the city and some rural areas while the Minister of Works and Hydraulics is either in deep sleep or is busy “brukking” down the stalls of the poor and the powerless, thus denying them the opportunity to make an honest living. This is not the Guyana we knew but it is the uncaring and anti-working class PPP regime we have come to recognize.
As dedicated and committed Guyanese citizens, we have asked for God’s continuous guidance on how we can make Guyana a place where the people could realize their true potential, instead of the greed, lust for power, money grabbling, corruption, violence, crime, and drugs that have manifested itself in all levels of government and have thus stifled the economic and social growth of our beloved country. This of course will be the legacy of the Jagdeo/Ramotar cabal who for the past decade has used the state resources to enrich themselves.
God has blessed us with a beautiful country endowed with rich natural resources, with some of the most talented people and priceless culture and heritage. Instead of using these gifts to develop the country’s potential for the benefit of all Guyanese, the Jagdeo/Rmotar cabal has used them to benefit themselves, their relatives and business buddies.
Today, most Guyanese are struggling to survive mainly because the dictatorial PPP regime has denied them the opportunity to improve their living standards. The regime has spent the last five years instilling fear on the poor and the working class while the opposition PNC stood idly by. As leader of the PNC between 2002 and 2011, Mr. Robert Corbin did not challenge the policies enacted by the Jagdeo/Ramotar regime, thus leaving some to conclude that he was in cahoots with the cabal.  In this period, Mr. Corbin not only abandoned the people but also absconded from his responsibilities and in the process gave the Jagdeo/Ramotar cabal a free reign to plunder the people and rape the treasury. We must stand up and be strong with confidence in order to overcome all the dreadful and evil deeds this regime has rained down on the nation.
We need a strong and vibrant opposition political leader who can stand up to the bullies in the regime; the current APNU leader, Ret. Brig. David Granger is not that leader. Like his predecessor, he has been unable to stand up and forcefully challenge the regime on behalf of the people to correct its oppressive and abusive ways.  He has remained a sleeping and a tooth less jaguar for too long. As a result, many in Guyana, especially the youths, have become despondent and have given up hope. The youths in particular have developed a negative attitude towards Guyana. When the youths of the country see no future for themselves, this is a sure sign that we are a nation in distress and in serious crisis.
If the PPP regime does not develop policies aimed at helping the youths to become more productive and self-sufficient, the end result is that they will be influenced by others, like criminals and drug barons who are all over the country luring the youths away from the right paths to achieve success. We cannot allow them to influence and win over our youths just as how we cannot allow the Jagdeo/Ramotar cabal to use propaganda, distortions and untruths to poison the minds of the youths.
We expect the corrupt practices to be dealt with by the PPP regime but so far they have refused to prosecute their friends and relatives because the PPP Police Force headed by Leroy Brummell remains helpless as they wait for directives from the political directorate. This is a fact that became known during the Linden Commission of Inquiry. No one can dispute that the banishing of Assistant Commissioner of Police David Ramnarine to a dead-end position in the Force is directly linked to the involvement of political directives at the Ministry of Home Affairs.
We need to be committed to the building of Guyana in order to save our country’s beleaguered image abroad and to encourage and embolden the people to become entrepreneurs and steer Guyana on the path to success. The youths are becoming restless and anxious to have a decent job to support themselves and but because they are unable to find jobs due to the high youth unemployment rate, many have decided to “harass,” “hustle” and become criminals if that what it takes to survive.
We implore our fellow Guyanese, particularly the youths, not give up hope but actively reject and resist these acts of abuses unleashed on them by the Jagdeo/Ramotar cabal. We cannot allow the masters of corruption to win over our sacred values and in the process destroy the country.
We must actively take charge of our country from the wicked and decadent dictatorial regime.
Dr. Asquith Rose and Harish S. Singh

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