Latest update November 14th, 2024 12:12 AM

Guyana's largest selling daily and New York's most popular weekly

Latest News

New Dooms Year

Dec 20, 2013 Letters

Dear Editor,
For many any exercise of a celebratory nature at this time is essentially illusionary, if indeed not delusionary. On reflection on all the declamations, the angry, vociferous parliamentary exchanges; the patent blindness and deafness of contending stakeholders; the defferential environment surrounding judicial pronouncements; the resounding silences of civil society; and the sonorous indifferent plaints of religious groupings, contrasting with the protagonistic media commentaries: all cumulating into the sterile cacophony that has marked 2013. By any account 2013 has been a year of non-achievement. The gross domestic product bears no relevance to the quality of life, nor is it representative of the depth of spiritual comfort which so many desperately seek.
There is no place to go, no model to emulate, in the search for integrity, principle and those best practices that would add value to living, and upgrade the worth of interactions between colleagues, and amongst groups.
Come the next year and we are asked to look forward to a new calendar of doomsday prognoses; to the contrived justifications for the postponements of ill-conceived infrastructural projects, to the obfuscations intended to cloud the almost addictive misuse of funds; to the robotic programming of decision-making which inanely insists that rain is bad for sugar; and that a new board will deal with the non-climatic over-cost of the industry’s under-performance.
This last chronic national dilemma has been the subject of several oral and written arguments, official debates; not to mention repeatedly ineffectual strategies and plans.
Examination of the strengths and weaknesses of the industry has largely been assigned to foreigners over the years. The efficacy of their remedial interventions have not been discernible. Yet there remains this obdurate commitment to a self-deception that is sufficiently convincing to its authors that they believe they can fool others, including those who know better.
But it is time to stop drawing lines in the sand. The situation is admitted by all – stakeholders or not – that the life of the sugar industry depends on treatment as if it were in the intensive care unit (which in fact it is).
Common sense should therefore prevail over the limited misconception that only the purported owners have responsibility for its care; while in fact excluding the legal owners, i.e. the citizens of the country. How could it be argued that a national entity belongs to only one ‘minority’ community, when at the same time all communities are implored, not only to understand the reasons for the industry’s failure, but moreso to bear the consequences?
The year 2014 is the time to bring an end to this paranoia, and acknowledge that the true reality is that there are relevant and proven Guyanese skills and competencies (resident and non-resident) who are accessible and willing to contribute, individually and severally, their expertise in helping to reduce, if not totally resolve, the performance deficits in both field and factory.
If it not before, it should now be recognised that any previous declamations from the abovementioned were in fact but a cri de coeur, resulting from their deep and long attachment to ‘our’ sugar industry.
There can be nothing to lose from a collaboration of skills, minds and determination for all to win.
This submission therefore should be regarded as an open offer to the relevant decision-makers to let common sense over-rule extant myopic internalisations.
Earl B. John

 

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 11th, 2024

 

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

Guyana Beverage Inc. on board with Petra to host 8th Annual Girls U11 Football Tournament

Guyana Beverage Inc. on board with Petra to host 8th Annual Girls U11...

Nov 14, 2024

  Kaieteur Sports- As excitement builds for Saturday’s kickoff, Guyana Beverage Inc. through its Koolkidz brand has joined the roster of sponsors supporting the Petra Organisation’s MVP...
Read More
GFF launches NAMILCO/Maid Marian Wheat Up Women’s Cup

GFF launches NAMILCO/Maid Marian Wheat Up...

Nov 14, 2024

Semi’s bowls off tomorrow with double-header at Providence 

Semi’s bowls off tomorrow with...

Nov 14, 2024

NO SURPRISE!!

NO SURPRISE!!

Nov 14, 2024

More support for Project “Cricket Gear for young and promising cricketers in Guyana”.

More support for Project “Cricket Gear for...

Nov 14, 2024

Guyana to participate at 2024 FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup

Guyana to participate at 2024 FIBA 3×3...

Nov 13, 2024

Features/Columnists

  • Poor Power Planning (PPP)

    …Peeping Tom Kaieteur News- Planning has long been the PPP/C government’s pride and joy. The PPP/C touts it at rallies,... more

Publisher’s Note

Freedom of speech is our core value at Kaieteur News. If the letter/e-mail you sent was not published, and you believe that its contents were not libellous, let us know, please contact us by phone or email.

Feel free to send us your comments and/or criticisms.
Contact: 624-6456; 225-8452; 225-8458; 225-8463; 225-8465; 225-8473 or 225-8491.
Or by Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]