It is time we returned government to the people

Jan 19, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

The successful passage of the no-confidence motion against the coalition administration has brought Guyanese face to face with the possibility, I and others had been warning against – that of having the PPP back in office with just about the same composition as which it had been booted.
The issues with Charrandass’ vote aside, the no-confidence motion should be seen for what it is: a call for better and more representative government.
Are we ready to have the PPP back in power in its current form? Can we even countenance having the coalition continuing for another five years as we suffer from the effects of its welfare-retarding policies and its clear intent at political victimization and decimation of the lives and families of traditional PPP supporters in the sugar belt?
Guyanese, regardless of political affiliation, have to speak up and out about the coalition’s brutal and inhuman treatment of sugar workers, who were forced to go months without money and provision to look after their children and families as the coalition effectively pauperized them.
That the coalition considered its treatment of these sugar workers a routine matter of policy speaks of the callous disregard it has for natural justice and basic human rights, thinking that its supporters either would not understand, or even condone its deliberate and willful attempt to starve children and decimate the families of sugar workers out of political spite.
We have to draw a line against the brutality meted out by our current and previous administrations to us as a people, even as they pit us against each other for political ends.
This is the fourth time in the PNC’s political history when as a government it has demonstrated that it lacks the basic principles of government, justice and commitment to human rights necessary to govern in the interest of all Guyanese.
The first such was when they systematically rigged elections during their earlier 28-year reign. The second was their reduction of Guyana to economic rubble by the end of the 1980s. The third was the deception they exercised on their 2015 campaign trail, along the destructive policy matrix they implemented instead, the effects of which we are feeling even today.
The PNC-led coalition has gone to great lengths to disqualify itself from holding office. The PPP has also, even avoiding a no-confidence motion against it in 2014.
Do we want either of these parties being responsible for our governmental affairs? Can we even afford them in office for the next five years? What we cannot do at this juncture is throw up our hands in resignation and say, ‘that’s it,’ because doing so would cause us to sacrifice between 5 and 20 years of our lives to the government of either the PPP or the coalition administration, which to me is unthinkable.
A number of individuals including myself have established political parties as alternatives to the PPP and coalition. But being successful at providing an alternative government requires more than just the formation of political parties. The successful new political party/platform must demonstrate that it has the ministerial capacity to administer the affairs of government.
Second, it must possess the mix of policies which respond to the needs and demands of Guyanese. Therefore, as we rush to establish political parties, we need to consider engaging each other to form a full government complete with a solid policy framework which Guyanese can feel secure enough to install as their new Government.
We have voted on race in the past, but we are not fools. We demand a better and more representative government, a government that can administer our affairs competently while addressing the multitude of political, social and economic concerns.
To succeed, we have to pool our talents, financial and other and resources, and bring that successful political party/platform into reality. It is time we returned government to the people.

Yours Faithfully,
Craig Sylvester

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