Pontifications on the role of the WPA

Oct 14, 2016 Letters

Dear Editor,
Whether the WPA’s time has come and gone depends on them to show, no doubt they need to have new recruits, young vibrant blood who, it would be better, are attracted to the movement by what they see – like Kissoon does. He examines the party from a practical perspective and sees it in that light: “I cannot as an academic seriously deny what I see in front of me” he says. Now he is not alone on this.
Some years ago at a Walter Rodney death anniversary, I met a fiery enthusiastic brother in his early 40s and in love with the WPA, he couldn’t hide his excitement, he said to me “I never know Rodney, yuh know, ah neva see he when I join this party he did done dead.” He was sharing with me some things he wasn’t pleased about; “Dem banna gat to fire up moe buddy, I like this party, but we gat fuh keep it strong, why yuh think every anniversary I does come”. What this brother expressed to me then in my humble opinion represented the views of many then and now about the WPA.
He wasn’t satisfied with the activism of the party and was afraid that if it continued, then it was only a matter of time. Quite rightly they have much work to do if they must remain within the prevailing scheme of things; failing to keep eye on the flow of the tide is often costly. It also behooves any organization to make allowance for comrades who have noticeably become battle weary – as they say, it don’t mean a thing if it ain’t gat the swing. And as always; when a movement fails, it is its leadership that is always questioned.
But here’s an observation I need to make: Now there are those who single out individuals within the leadership of the WPA as being among the intelligentsia and refrain from attacking them, they don’t need that sort of fight while ordinary respectful members are disrespected. Freddie Kissoon is an exception, bold and forthright, he can get under your skin – matters not who you are. I recall seeing a letter by someone who responded to Ali Majeed, a WPA activist who stood in the battle line for a better Guyana, lost his job too. The letter-writer referred to him as “a battle scarred WPA activist from the Burnham area” One could have felt the. He subsequently made an apology to the WPA leadership of which Majeed was not a part of, though Majeed’s letter was in defense of the WPA. I have a problem with intellectuals who delight in putting down ordinary everyday people who in their estimation they consider as “nutten”, I abhor with a passion those who behave this way.
Now back to Kissoon, Freddie may blast the WPA as he often does, but no one knows better than him the invaluable contribution of the WPA. Tacuma Ogunseye was smack on when he states of him: “On the one hand he sees the WPA as dead, and on the other hand he has high expectations of this dead entity”, exactly! In his head I think he would like nothing better than to see the party “raising from the ashes” into a mighty flame, I don’t think he would ever seek to destroy genuine comrades of the party he has worked with over the years, turbulent years at that. Harsh as he maybe, I want to disagree with David Hinds, another brother who has been in the front line in saying Freddie remains a part of the family though he wouldn’t blare it out; that is why his interest in the WPA still burns. I think somewhere hidden he does harbor a bit of sentiments; things aren’t always what they seemed.
Frank Fyffe

Editor’s note: This is the conclusion of the letter carried in our edition yesterday.

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Pontifications on the role of the WPA

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