Guyana has already been taken back!

Feb 13, 2019 Letters

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Dear Editor,

A recent campaign rally by the PPP featured in the headlines quoted Bharrat Jagdeo and presidential hopeful lrfaan Ali saying that they will “take our country back”.
Take back our country? From whom?
No foreign invader has seized our dear land nor was it lost to any domestic tyranny or terror. In fact, it is in the hands of the Guyanese people through a duly democratically elected government at the national, regional and local government level.
Something we could not say to be true of the PPP government under the presidency of Mr. Jagdeo.
Mr. Jagdeo and his recently selected presidential candidate are at it again with their race baiting for political gains as surely his comments were a reference to the ethnic make-up of the PPP and the larger coalition government partner (PNC/R).
Last election campaign Mr. Jagdeo said that if the PPP wasn’t returned to power the GDF will be used to kick down the doors of PPP supporters’ homes and do unspeakable things.
None of this ever came to past.
Guyanese are more involved in the running of this country than ever before as the press is truly free, freedom of speech is guaranteed (no calypsos bad mouthing government banned) and access to information greatly improved with projects such as the commissioning of radio Aishalton.
So to cast aspersions that Guyana is in the hands of anything except Guyanese is a fallacy.
Allow me to further dispel the fallacy propagated by the PPP duo with their “take our country back” comment. The current PPP campaign has the slogan “Defend Your Democracy”, which when taken against the history of the PPP as against their coalition opponent, is beyond ironic.
Democracy is the velvet glove that hides the iron fist of the autocratic elitist nature of the PPP in its current form. Bharrat Jagdeo and Irfaan Ali are willing to disenfranchise scores of young people in their thirst for power by their unwillingness to allow house-to-house registration and a proper cleansing of the voters’ list.
It is in their power to allow house-to-house registration with two-thirds majority parliamentary support to hold elections after GECOM is fully ready. This is the party that by lip service claims to be champions of the cause for young Guyanese.
From 2015 to date, 14 and 15-year-olds would have come of age where they would have been constitutionally guaranteed a democratic right to one vote for the party of their choice. Jagdeo, Irfaan and the PPP would deny that right to young people to cast their first ever vote if it means a shot at power and that calls into question their motive for seeking office.
The PPP may be the largest mass based political party in Guyana and a wonderful opportunity to prove its commitment to democracy was afforded to the party when it came time to elect and not select a presidential candidate.
By modest estimations, PPP has 14,000 registered members of which 13,965 voices were silenced only allowing for 35 to have a say in who represents the party as its presidential candidate.
This is not counting out those who by unofficial reports were pressured to withdraw or votes bought by Mr. Jagdeo. So in reality the democratic enfranchisement of 14,000 PPP members was a sacrifice for the will of just one (Mr. Jagdeo).
A seat in the national assembly is afforded by about 7000 votes and those who occupy those seats do so on the basis of representative democracy and as a result do not represent themselves but the 7000 votes that put them there.
On December 21, 2018 those 7,000 voters had their democratic will subverted with the help of PPP operatives (Peter Ramsaroop and car full of friends) when Charrandass Persaud voted with the opposition.
It was a vote that contrary to Mr. Persaud’s claim of one of conscience, is reported to have been procured for US $ 1 million and given who the vote benefits and his company on the said night strongly hints his buyer to be agents of the PPP.
Not even the democratic rights guaranteed under the constitution is safe under a Jagdeo-led PPP government as he denied the country local government elections so that hand selected interim management committees that were bent to his will, did his biddings.
So no, Guyanese will not give back this country to the cabal of Jagdeo or his cohorts. Guyana will not be surrendered back to the hands of a select few friends who monopolized local industries such as the telecommunication to their selfish benefit, the streets and lives of young men will not be sold over again to drug lords to do with as they wish and Guyana will not see ministers and friends create another ‘Prado Ville’.
Guyana currently rests safely in the hands of Guyanese benefitting Guyanese! Take back our country? We have already taken it back through free and fair elections overseen by a PPP government and we will keep our country with another free and fair elections whenever it comes.

Yours respectfully,
Kenny V

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