The government at 21

Oct 05, 2013 Editorial

Until the law was changed in 1972 Guyanese could not consider themselves adults until they had attained the age of 21.That was the age when an individual was deemed to be capable of making his own decisions. He could marry without permission and for this reason, the more affluent among us would give the child the symbolic key to freedom.
It was the age when young people fashioned jewellery in the form of a key, when they also looked forward to voting. In fact, voting was the real essence of being an adult and there could be no more serious thing than choosing the people who would be the national leaders and who would be responsible for the welfare of the country.
That changed when the age of majority was changed to 18 and the argument was that young people were allowed to work and to open bank accounts at 18. They could become soldiers who would risk their lives for the country or policemen who are called on to protect everything within the borders of the country.
The ruling People’s Progressive Party Civic has been in power now for 21 years—the old age of majority. When one looks at this achievement one must also look back at the demographics of the country. A lot has changed in the 21 years since the People’s Progressive Party Civic acceded to office but then again many things remain unchanged.
The bulk of the population know no other government than the one in place because the statistics show that about 65 per cent of the population is below the age of 35 and more than fifty per cent is below the age of 21. And that explains why the population takes things like the Demerara Harbour Bridge, the Soesdyke/Linden Highway and free education for granted. These are things that have been around for more than the 21 years that the government has been in office.
The young people are also taking things like the telephone, television and computers for granted. Nearly all of them were born when these things were already common features in the country. Most people in Guyana are not aware that there was a time in the not too distant past when people relied on telephone booths placed at road corners to make calls; when a call to North America took three days or when keeping abreast with what was happening abroad was an impossible task.
Today there are more schools but the teachers seem to be less skilled than their predecessors. This is because migration is taking its toll on the country. A recent study showed that 85 per cent of the people who complete their tertiary education migrate, leaving Guyana poorer for its efforts. Migration began a long time ago, even before ethnic politics began to be a factor in Guyana.
What else has remained the same is the confrontational nature of the politicians. Governments developed the attitude that they were not responsible to anyone. The president is still the maximum leader and parliament is still the most confrontational place there is.
Simple debates have become causes for hostility and developmental efforts are state secrets until the government opts to make an announcement. The result is that most Guyanese do not know what local government elections are because none has been held in their lifetime.
The new government came on the scene with the slogan ‘a return to democracy’. Because of the attitude of a government not listening to people the previous government under Forbes Burnham was deemed by the opposition to be a dictatorship. There was ethnic insecurity in the wake of allegations that each government tended to favour those of its own kind.
These allegations remain as do the criticisms of Forbes Burnham who died nearly thirty years ago and who most of the country never had a chance to meet.
At 21 an individual is expected to change some aspects of his life; he is expected to demonstrate responsibility; he is expected to be mature and so put aside childish things. Can we expect to see changes in the government at 21?

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The government at 21

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