LOSING THE WILL TO LEAD

Dec 14, 2016 Editorial, Features / Columnists

There was a time not too long ago when the people in the Caribbean, especially those in the Eastern Caribbean states, looked to Guyana for leadership on many issues, including regional cooperation and development among them.
Although, for instance, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago obtained their independence from Britain in 1962, Guyana which gained its independence in 1966, essentially paved the way for the rest to follow, and they did.
Guyana was considered the regional pacesetter following the creation of the Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA) in 1965 by Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Guyana, and Trinidad and Tobago which became CARICOM in 1973. In that period, Guyana’s food output was so massive that it was considered the breadbasket of the Caribbean.
Guyana became a leader in the Caribbean in the areas of education, health care, infrastructure development, agricultural and mining production, and the inspiring and visionary leadership at the time saw the country spearheading a fresh and new attempt at regional cooperation after the collapse of the West Indies Federation.
Its role in economic development and regional and international cooperation and in the Non-Aligned Movement reinvigorated interest in Caribbean unity. And that was not all, Guyana made many other headways. In 1970, it became the first Cooperative Republic in the world. It was one of the first countries in the region to propose the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the highest court of appeal in the region, to replace the Privy Council. While a few countries have joined the CCJ, several others are in the process of doing so.
Its 1966 Constitution was among the first countries in the region to offer greater protection to fundamental rights and freedoms to its citizens, including protection against discrimination due to disability, ethnicity, religion and social class, freedom of the press, freedom of association and gender equality. These established arrangements have remained largely unchanged over the past 50 years which suggests that those who crafted it should be applauded for making those bold and progressive steps to enhance democracy in the country.
Today, Guyana is no longer viewed as demonstrating that kind of leadership. It seems that our leaders have lost the will to lead. There is evidence of significant deficiencies in the current leadership, which leaves little doubt that it is in crisis. Many of our leaders do not possess the character, talent and skill to guide the nation and to hold true to commonly accepted values and principles of good governance. Neither is there the vision and competence to lead the citizens and the country towards the achievement of development and prosperity. Equally, there is no commitment to building deep and caring relations with people.
The wider public has openly denounced the sad state of political leadership in the country today. The outcome of this dilemma is evident in the collapsing institutions, debilitating social decay, endemic crime, joblessness, increased poverty, continued corruption, uninspiring GDP growth, gross incompetence and political and economic uncertainty.
Citizens should not be afraid to criticize the poor leadership in the country and the mismanagement of the affairs of the state. Failing to criticize them would be a gross neglect of civic duty.
We reiterate that Guyana lacks visionary and transformative leadership to lift the people up to perform beyond their perceived limitations and to focus on their potential, not their weakness. For far too long our leaders have been arrogant, aloof and elitist and are obsessed with power and status. They are tone-deaf and do not have the ability to motivate and inspire.
The question is who can truly lead and develop this country that has always had such immense potential. Those who have been elected over the past few decades have believed that leadership is really about themselves, and not the people they serve and the institutions they manage. Our leaders lack these attributes and they have lost the will to lead.

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