The PPP should stop bashing Burnham to hide its own corruption and costly mismanagement

Apr 11, 2015 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
The PPP continues to attack David Granger and the PNCR about what transpired under Burnham’s presidency. This is very likely because they have found themselves mired in a situation where much of the little good that the PPP has done is shrouded in some form of corruption and/or mismanagement which has resulted in the loss of millions, and in some cases, billions of dollars.
The public should now be aware that the PPP’s corruption and other indiscretions have so overtaken it, that they very probably are now unable to attract individuals to their Party, and so have bolstered their ranks with family members. They are thus trapped in a technical vacuum which forces them to resort to rehashing history.
It would be disingenuous to deny that Guyana endured hardships under Burnham. These include the unavailability of many basic items that resulted from an inability of the economy to generate foreign exchange to meet import requirements at the time, and the many claims of vote-rigging.
Our economic hardships were a tragic reality of the time, the principal cause of this being the oil crisis, which characterized high oil prices on the international market and so made it difficult for Guyana to meet its import requirements, sometimes even on this item itself. The claims of vote-rigging have been many, with the PPP even today threatening a return to vote-rigging under the Coalition.
On this particular score, I cannot attest, since there has never, to my knowledge, been any attempt to demonstrate factually and unequivocally, as in the courts for example, that this did in fact occur. But to allow this latter charge even for the sake of discussion, there can be no clearer disconnect between Burnham and Granger, the PNCR, APNU and ultimately, the Coalition on economics, government, and governance for Guyana.
Granger, the PNCR and the Coalition are committed to, stand fast and hold to the principles of democracy in the first instance. The Coalition, David Granger and Moses Nagamootoo are also committed to competent government, good governance and the elimination of corruption in government, issues which have become the Achilles’ heel of the present administration.
The PPP has sought to demonize Burnham for political ends, but the fact is, (and history will record that notwithstanding his failures which principally resulted from his adoption of socialism) Burnham was a great leader and internationally recognized statesman, and was devoutly committed to the economic advancement and prosperity of all Guyanese.
Among his great achievements in pushing for Guyana’s economic and social development, if only to dispel the notion of Burnham being perpetrated by the PPP, are the institutionalization of many cultural/religious holidays in recognition of our multi-ethnic society, and the passing of the Amerindian Amendment Act in Parliament which facilitated the processing of land titles for Amerindians.
Burnham also was responsible for the formation of the National Insurance Scheme, the construction of the many multilateral schools and other primary, secondary and vocational educational facilities throughout the country, establishing the University of Guyana as our national tertiary institution on its current Turkeyen Campus, the guarantee of free education to all Guyanese from nursery to university, a policy which the PPP considered wise to undo, the Linden Highway and the Demerara Harbour Bridge, which have withstood the test of time.
Finally, Burnham recognized that racism remained a threat to Guyana’s social stability and so initiated talks with Dr. Cheddi Jagan to form a coalition government with the PPP from the late seventies up until the time of his death. Today, this coalition has become a reality with the formation of the APNU+AFC alliance.
An unfortunate truth is that the PPP has sought to destroy and tarnish the image and contributions of Burnham to Guyana’s social and economic progress for political gain. They have also sought to destroy and undermine the character of Moses Nagamootoo and Khemraj Ramjattan, two former PPP stalwarts and dedicated Guyanese servants. These two individuals have separately contested the PPP’s corruption and injustice while members of that party, and today stand with David Granger in the APNU+AFC Coalition.
We are therefore encouraged to be cognizant of our history and be wary of the disparaging claims of the PPP as it seeks to mask its own negligence in managing Guyana’s economy during its tenure.
Craig Sylvester

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