Back to the Future

Dec 18, 2014 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
In the early 1960s when Jock Campbell was Chairman of the Booker Empire, and devoted special interest to the sugar industry through the operations of Booker Sugar Estates in Guyana, he developed quite a cordial relationship with then Premier Cheddi Jagan. It was a time of historic national demand for independence, so much so that there were already rumblings forecasting the nationalisation of the sugar industry – a matter that in fact was the topic of one or more conversations between Jock and Cheddi.
Clem Seecharan’s voluminous ‘Sweetening Bitter Sugar’ speaks comprehensively about the relationship which developed between the two socialists, albeit of different ilk.
When the idea of parcelling out the industry’s cane lands into lots for small cane farming was raised by Cheddi, Jock temporised with a counter-offer to begin developing a small cane farming sub-sector within the industry.
Bookers Sugar Estates, as if in foresight, had already installed, a (peasant) cane farming community of 55 selected sugar workers (and families) at what is still known as Bellevue Cane Farmers Cooperative Society (West Bank Demerara), each with fifteen-acre lots, and space for kitchen gardens. It was an organised community with facilities for sports and other recreation.
So it was not too difficult for Bookers Sugar Estates, in collaboration with Demerara Company (Leonora and Diamond) to keep Jock’s word and establish a comprehensive programme co-funded together with the Royal Bank of Canada and Barclays Bank DC&O, to promote small cane farming throughout all estates, except Blairmont.
As was to be expected, the arrangements were reinforced by the appropriate legislation, including the National Cane Farming Committee Act. Village and other farming groups were organised into legal entities – Cooperatives – in order to facilitate their access to the Cane Farming Development Fund.
There was meticulous estate supervision of, and ready technical assistance for, initial development, as well as crop maintenance. Farmers of every type thrived in an industry in which all had hope for the future.
The latter was not to be however, and over the past decade industry–watchers would have noted and analysed its decline, and that of cane farming with it.
Indeed over the past two/three weeks there were letters in the press basically bemoaning the depreciating state of cane farming. Obviously, however, these publications went unnoticed by an AFC MP, who is a devotee of the late Cheddi Jagan, when on a recent TV programme he remarked on the current poor management of the sugar industry – a view with which no one could possibly disagree.
However, in an apparent burst of nostalgic optimism, the speaker proffered the view that one approach to rescuing the industry was to resort to his mentor’s conceptualisation of small cane farming.
What could those who listened, and know better, expect from this future Premier? But then again he may have been briefed by some GuySuCo official.
E.B. John

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