Rohee, Benn, Ramotar: The PPP Jagan left behind

Dec 05, 2014 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

Early in my academic career, I argued that my generation and subsequent ones never saw Cheddi Jagan as a policy-maker in action and once Jagan remained as President, we would see what he was made of. I long suspected that in power Dr. Jagan would not be a hero, because he was made a hero for opposing the stupid, unnecessary, dictatorial things Forbes Burnham did. If Burnham had been a democrat, Jagan would have become a forgotten footnote.
Once in power, Jagan showed he was far from heroic or honest or multi-racial. African civil servants were dismissed because they were either African or PNC supporters. A majority of them were not paid their legal entitlements, including the editor of this newspaper, Adam Harris. Others took Jagan to court and won, like Keith Austin and the late Cedric Grant.
Cheddi Jagan in power after 1992 virtually devastated the physiology of the State. Even Jagan’s baby, the University of Guyana, wasn’t spared; he removed duty-free concession for lecturers. Jagan died in 1997 and left his party in office and all in its leadership including, Ralph Ramkarran, but with the exception of Moses Nagamootoo and Khemraj Ramjattan, became worse than any type of politician the PNC or any party in the CARICOM region produced.
They say ‘never say never’, but the CARICOM region will never see, after the PPP goes, the following five PPP personnel in another CARICOM party – Charles Ramson, Bharrat Jagdeo, Clement Rohee, Gail Teixeira and Neil Kumar. I will stay clear of elaboration and I am fully aware that I did not include Anil Nandlall. If I could have elongated on my choices, I could have stated why Nandlall does belong in that category. These are the products of Cheddi Jagan. Only the PPP could have produced these five personalities.
After twenty-two years in power, we have come to see what Cheddi Jagan created. I drive past the tomb of Forbes Burnham every day and on each occasion, he would rise up, smile, call me Freddie, and intone, “Freddie, look who ya’ll throw me out for.” I would take the liberty of calling him Forbes and I would reply; “Forbes, my conscience is clear; I have fought them, I am fighting them, and I will not stop until we throw them out.”
I pass North Road almost daily, and as I reach the home of President Desmond Hoyte, he would push his visage out the window, take the liberty of calling me Freddie, and would say with a ponderously serious face; “Freddie, how do you feel now, after what all of you did to get me out of power?” I cannot bring myself to call him Desmond because his entire personality is so serious, I would reply; “Mr. Hoyte, people try to make up for their mistakes, I am doing just that.”
The moment, the first instance I heard about an official inquiry into Walter Rodney’s death, I knew what was coming. After 21 years the PPP leadership decided to have a judicial inquiry. Only a fool could have been so mentally idiotic not to see what was coming. I feel for Mrs. Patricia Rodney. She lost her husband. Three children lost their father, but Mrs. Rodney cannot be so naïve to believe the PPP is interested in the answers to who murdered Walter Rodney. I apologize if she feels hurt when I say that she has been used. I will never hurt her feelings, but I write this as someone who believes in that statement in a deeply honest way.
Look at Cheddi Jagan’s “children” today. I glanced at the television news and saw Clement Rohee threatening push-cart CD sellers. These poor people are his object of attention while Georgetown is swimming in a sea of garbage, miasma and sewerage. Does Mr. Rohee have a heart and a conscience? Mr. Robeson Benn sends his crew to arrest little girls selling bottled water at the Vlissengen Road/Irving Street/Lamaha Street junction. He said they block traffic. That is untrue.
Drive one minute from that junction and a massive construction at the junction of Sandy Babb Street and Vlissengen Road has devastated the flow of traffic for the past three years now. Go to Middleton Street and a private school has taken up the pavement creating a traffic nightmare. But Benn picks on little girls who belong to single parents
Then there is the “big” man himself. He is the head man of his party and government, yet two young female parliamentarians of his party have denounced Anil Nandlall’s sordid comments on women. The “big” man refuses to do so.

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