Guyana has descended into chaos

Jul 06, 2014 News

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–  Government and opposition to be blamed – Dr. Faith Harding

“You don’t get a sense of a community of ownership going in the same direction…it’s always a fight; always a stretching of who I am, who are you, and everyone trying to put the other one in their place, so to speak.”
 
By Leon Suseran
Psychologist and former Government Minister, Dr. Faith Harding is of the opinion that Guyana has descended into chaos,

due to the behaviour of both the government and opposition.
Dr. Harding has done extensive work with the United Nations over the years, and was instrumental in the formation of governments for and restoring stability to war-torn nations such as Lebanon and East Timor.
Speaking exclusively to this newspaper recently, Dr. Harding expressed concerns with the manner in which this country’s Government and Opposition relate to each other in what needs to be done in Guyana.
“Guyana has essentially descended into chaos; it has been disjointed and chaotic for the past two to three years. The incompetence of our leaders is spread all over the nation, and rising like a huge volcanic eruption.
“I feel the tension in the society and it is frightening, because you know it could be better and we should be working on changing people’s lives; monetizing people’s resources; making people feel that they have a meaningful stake in the development of this country; taking away the frustration,” she added.
“There seems to be little cooperation among our leaders, too. You don’t get a sense of a community of ownership going in the same direction…it’s always a fight; always a stretching of who I am, who are you, and everyone are trying to put the other one in their place, so to speak.”
Dr. Harding noted that the kind of behaviour exhibited by the nation’s politicians is akin to those she experienced when she taught in New York, “five-year-old children, especially the boys, who would gang up in the bathroom to see who can shoot the farthest using their physical organs.”
“Everyone, both Government and Opposition is always in a rush to criticize and to pull down. You rush to pull someone else down, to destroy someone else’s esteem; because you have low self-esteem…you don’t feel good about yourself.”
“The politicians seem to be playing marbles with the life of this nation…with the lives of 700,000 people and 83,000 square miles. Guyana could have gotten so far if there was not this lack of distrust and cohesiveness.
“Look at the situation in the capital city of Georgetown. It is deplorable. Look at the lawlessness that emanates from our capital city—the mismanagement of the city—the vulgarity put to the public from people of leadership!”
“How can one function effectively in a city that is so filthy—your capital city, that you must show off—where the Government is seated—where the National Assembly is seated—and you continue to make it a mental health crisis for people. All over this city we have the homeless and people who are not taken care of!”
“Look at what is happening to the government—and the opposition as a team!” she exclaimed.
Dr. Harding noted what you customarily have these days are a lot of accusations and threats from both sides.
“That’s because they are all insecure and unfortunately this nation is forced to deal with this insecurity. When pertinent issues are brought to the fore for discussion, people in authority get totally defensive, rather than being mature and secure, so that they can look at and deal with the issue effectively.”
“I pain for my country and for the children of this nation, because they deserve better. We’re a land of richness and wealth, but we are not approaching it in the direct, comprehensive and cooperative ways—it’s supposed to be The Cooperative Republic of Guyana—the politics is supposed to be different from the nastiness we see!”
She opined that the situation in Guyana is clearly forcing many citizens to leave the country. “It’s truly frightening! It’s time we mature—stop the nonsense—stop trying to shoot farther than your brother—because you think you have got better prowess than your brother. This is a nation; become more mature! Time to stop the petty nonsense and let us get develop going!”
“There’s too much chaos going on. You can feel it in the air. We are covered with too much confusion! This needs to stop – for the sake of our beloved nation and people.”
In recent years, Government and Opposition have been involved in numerous bitter disagreements and what could be described as political warfare, especially on crucial issues in the National Assembly. A prime example of this is the Anti- Money Laundering Bill currently before the Assembly for passage, but on which the parties have not seen it fit to work in a collaborative manner.

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