This is old, old political behaviour

Jul 27, 2016 Letters

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Dear Editor:
It is with much trepidation that I observe human behaviour is nothing but intractable. I speak of the behaviour of a PNC member on the Regional Democratic Council in Region 5, West Berbice. This behaviour from this specific PNC member brings back memories of the bad old PNC days when that party in classic iconoclastic style, refused to allow the nation to be part of the democratic traditions of the majority of the people around the world. Only over the last few weeks, England has again had the chance to show the tribes how democracy works; it is all about an idea, not the personal whims and fancy of a person.
The councilor will be best advised to step away from these debauched attitudes. All she is doing is badly hurting President Granger, unless he is the intellectual author of this sort of covert bullyism in the councils in the local system which the PNC does not control. But, I will try to see the better man in our President. In 2014, when the political opposition activist Mr. Mark Ross, now security advisor to Minister Ramjattan, leader of the now almost dead AFC, called a protest against the prorogation of the Parliaments by the then Ramotar government, it was this same person who undermined that protest. In her words she said that PNC “does not operate in an anyhow manner”. So how come today she is operating is such a low class “anyhow manner” for the past six months? When will the thuggish behaviour depart from the mental minds of these PNC operatives?
With political supporters like her, President Granger does not need political enemies, since she single-handedly has hijacked his social cohesion programme. Today, all forces opposed to this GDFism in government will hold their nose and vote PPP, even those on the sidelines who do not like Jagdeoism. And the PPP has not missed a beat on this public display of “thugism.” At every bottom house meeting all across rural Guyana, the PPP has shown this video at every bottom house meeting, even on big screen – projector and all.
This councilor can learn a lot from a black woman of worth called Mrs. Michelle Obama, who classically rejected “thugism” by illustrating in all her actions an attitude of taking the high road when her opponent takes the low road. Mrs. Obama wins every time and will be leaving the White House as one of the most popular first ladies and maybe first female black President of America. Shame on this councilor! Shame on the PNC! Shame on the APNU-AFC government! Shame on President Granger! Shame on Nagamootoo!
Today , Nagamootoo and Granger continue to sit idly by as a man from Brooklyn continues to run the Region as the REO totally side stepping the council. Is this not an active effort to marginalise the voice of the majority? Such anti-democratic actions are a stark reminder of the same old PNC from the 1970’s and 1980’s, when these anti-democratic PNC traditions predominated. Is this how the PNC plans to roll in 2020, by bullying people and trampling on democracy? I want to bring this issue to the attention of the Ambassador of the United States. These issues must find their way into the next report of the State Department. PNC gone rogue should be the caption of the email.
The facts will show that the PPP Chairman broke protocol by not welcoming President Granger, but is President Granger too soft to lose his dogs of war on a whole region because one man snubbed him? That is nothing but childish behaviour and I did not expect a person who is the President to condone such behaviour. The business of the Region has to continue and if the councilor and President Granger have a problem with the Chairman, they ought to operate more enlightened and mature. Is it only the laws of the jungle this councilor is schooled in?
An entire regional government is being held up because of one thug and her intellectual author in Congress Place. When I watch that video of Ms Joseph singing at the top of her voice to disrupt the official meeting of the council, I knew there and then that the PNC is setting itself up to fail come 2020.
By his silence after six months, President Granger also is accountable for this situation. At the end of the day, the buck stops at the President’s desk which is causing Region 5 to retrogress. Or is this a strategy to destroy the rural agriculture based in West Berbice?
Now in comes Jagdeo who tells the people that the Coalition Government is anti-rural Guyana. What do you think? Will his message stick? You the reader can arrive at your own conclusion. What I know is the PPP is gaining political strength and the PNC is looking like a bunch of incompetent fools who can only rely on naked old behaviour rather than brain to get ahead. Shame!
Jai (Harry) Lall

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