At the crossroads, again

Jun 09, 2019 Countryman

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By Dennis Nichols

Boom or bust! Guyana’s political, social, and economic path is (again) at the crossroads – maybe the most consequential junction in our history. What has been happening in these spheres over the past six months tells us that. Oil, politics, and crime are a curious mixture when they converge to either keep the status quo in place, if not purposefully addressed, or to chart a truly remarkable change in our nation’s fortunes if justly dealt with.
Being away from home for the past two months has forced me into a renewed but understandably narrow comparison between Guyana and the two countries I visited – the United States and The Bahamas (actually New York and Nassau). It’s close to an ‘apples and oranges’ metaphor since both countries, in spite of huge social problems, have achieved a level of stability and a sense of nationhood that makes our country seem like the miasma of perennial backwardness some claim it is. Such comparison may seem unfair, but it is actually a valid tool.
As civilizations and nations go, America as an independent state is relatively young at 243 years, while The Bahamas is a virtual babe at 46. Guyana toddles along at 53. Yet the USA is arguably the world’s only current superpower (with BRICS – Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) creeping up on her tail, while The Bahamas is touted as the wealthiest nation in the Caribbean, and the third richest in the Americas. In science, technology and industry, America has forged its way to the top of the heap. Bahamas’s tourism and financial services industries have done the same in the Caribbean. Where is Guyana?
I feel that real nationhood does not come easy. The United States story is one of blood and guts, war and terror; but also hope and resilience when people regardless of racial, cultural and other differences, who sometimes fought each other, came together to face and overcome a common threat.
In America, it was the fight for independence, the dislocation and annihilation of native populations, the civil war, and the civil rights struggle among others. The Bahamas had to eradicate the scourge of piracy and stave off hurricanes that threatened their economic well-being repeatedly.
Guyana, like both of those nations, had its share of troubles, including slavery and, in the case of The Bahamas, colonialism. But they were less severe, and our generally passive nature meant that they were only half-heartedly addressed, even after the disturbances of the early sixties and subsequent independence. Furthermore, there was no really robust effort to address racial animosities, political propaganda, and often related criminal activities. Many small fry paid for the freedom of bigger fish, which swam in unpatrolled waters. We’re still floundering in a sea of leadership mismanagement, mediocrity, and corruption, and we have the lack of ‘touristic’ infrastructural to show it.
Here are two quick ‘other’ examples, unfair comparisons maybe, but just to make the point. New York City is only a microcosm of America, but glimpses of the Manhattan skyline from a 3000-ft high jetliner is still a breathtaking experience that captures the country’s phenomenal growth and power. A logical follow-up is the hundred-floor elevator ride to the One World Trade Centre Observatory where time-lapse video screens depict city life including its transformation over the years, and from which a 360-degree panorama of its boroughs is visible. The two vistas alone tell a tale.
In The Bahamas, it was Baha Mar – the US$4.2 billion 1000-acre resort/complex set amidst the clearest waters and whitest sand beaches of Nassau’s northern shore that I got, again, only a glimpse of, for obvious financial limitations. Featuring three world-class hotels, a Jack Nicklaus signature golf course, and the largest, state-of-the-art casino in the Caribbean, it has been making a ‘significant contribution’ to the country’s economic and cultural development according to the current Prime Minister Hubert Minnis. Its 40 restaurants help provide employment for over 4,000 workers.
Okay, we were searching for Guyana’s place in the nation’s heap but couldn’t find it anywhere remotely close to the top. But behold, like The Jeffersons in that iconic American sitcom, we may soon start ‘movin’ on up’, to the rich side, come next year, that is if we still have a governable country after the CCJ ruling, ExxonMobil’s pre-contract demands, and Venezuela’s continued post-treaty fulminations. Hopefully, there is some behind-the-scenes wheeling and dealing with the powers-that-be that will save us from any such national angst. Roll the dice.
Politically, there is too much verbal politicking going on, and it’s going to get worse as general elections roll around. Talk may be cheap, but the persons who listen to and follow propagandists can make others pay dearly for it. What Jagan and Burnham started after the 1955 PPP split in terms of rivalry and race-party kinship, has morphed into deep and ingrained suspicions between the two major races, particularly around election time. Violence is never far away.
Socially, it’s just as bad, or worse. Poverty and crime are huge and seemingly insurmountable obstacles to true nationhood. Unemployment, functional illiteracy, and mental illness walk hand-in-hand with them. Those comrades-in-arms are personified in thousands of youths, many of whom would welcome positive mentorship from responsible adults. But what too many of them ‘see’ are nasty and mendacious crooks masquerading as businessmen, politicians, and religious leaders.
Filth begets filth in its various forms. It corrupts childhood innocence, sets off teenage rebellion, and places our youth and young adults in the courts, the jail, and the cemetery. It never ends.
Economically, there’s a sliver of hope for our redemption as a people. It is built on the assumption that while the love of money may be the root of all evil, its availability and use as a tool for personal and national development is a virtue. There’s only that despicable beast called human selfishness to rid ourselves of. If our hearts are too hard and dry, maybe a little oil will help.

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