This level of ‘unbothered’ by a President is unmatched

Oct 07, 2019 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,
David Granger launched his bid for re-election in Linden by striking his ‘unbothered’ pose for an audience he rented from Georgetown. I remember a time when it was Linden who used to come to town for the PNC with the refrain ‘Linden different’ but that is not my focus; rather, it is the significance of the ‘unbothered’ stance held by the leader of an unconstitutional Executive. Everything you need to know about David Granger is caught in his state of repose.
Granger has never been bothered about the problems of the ordinary Guyanese, even when he caused the woes, he remains unbothered. Seven Thousand Sugar workers lost their livelihoods; this has caused untold suffering for their families. Unlike David Granger, when I saw stories of suffering like this, I got bothered and I am still extremely bothered. “My Name is Devina Budwah, I am 13 years old and I really want to go back to school, but sugar plantation close down…when I was in school, I always wanted to become a nurse, the estate is closed now, so my dream is fall apart.” This young girl’s dreams are shattered, her life is in pieces, how can the President of a nation be unbothered? Another Gordon Thomas said: “the government make so many promises and they are not fulfilling the promises, they said when Wales closes, so many things they would’ve done for the people them, that they would have a livelihood, that Wales would be a launching project for them…with 10 people employed, what they are saying is not factual, here is a ghost town.”
These stories and others were part of a British Broadcasting Corporation documentary, not sure that Granger has ‘bothered’ to look at it. These are but stories from two families, there are six thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight other families. Ordinary citizens are doing all they can to assist these families by way of donations, jobs, and other subsidies, but our caretaker President is unbothered by their plight.
It is not just the Sugar belt affected by ‘President Unbothered’, I was on a walkabout in Buxton recently sharing flyers chock-full of information about PPPC programmes and job creation plans, I was surrounded in Barrel street by a group of 20 plus people, young and old, all wanted to know about our plans for jobs, business assistance, and education. This has been the same in areas as diverse as Sophia, Better Hope, Plaisance, and Mon Repos. Others report similar queries and sentiments from all 10 Regions in Guyana, it was no surprise that a rent-a-crowd was taken to the mining town once regarded as the citadel of the PNC. Stay unbothered.
David Granger is unbothered that Guyanese do not have high-quality medical care; plans for a Specialty Hospital floundered under his watch. Granger remained unbothered even after his battle with Cancer, as Head-of-State, he had his choice of specialty hospitals the World over, his care is entrusted to the very best Cuba has to offer and costs of his travel borne by our treasury, there are others afflicted with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and other diseases, it bothers me that they are not afforded the same options of treatment and that Granger has not even made a promise to assist or construct a specialty hospital in Guyana if re-elected. This level of ‘unbothered’ by a President is unmatched and unparalleled in our nation’s short history.
Editor, Granger has met almost every revelation of corruption with a blank stare and an unbothered silence. A grab of 20 thousand acres of prime land and even encompassing half of the Demerara River itself was not enough to bother Granger. Ministers continue to award Contracts for self/family or cronies with impunity, as emboldened as Granger is unbothered. Human suffering; Hunger; Feelings of hopelessness pervade; suicide; murder; home invasions; street shootings; assault and armed robbery are now commonplace in broad daylight in every corner of the country including the center of the capital city. Granger remains unmoved and unbothered.
The very action that proved the ‘unbothered’ stance, namely protest action inside the GMSA luncheon, seems to have bothered Granger more than any of the things that affect ordinary citizens. Granger has responded by barricading himself with a quarter-mile radius for public appearances and even his presence in State House is evidenced by barricades and heavy police presence in the busy main street of the capital, inconvenience to others be damned. I am sure that David Granger will continue to be unbothered by the issues that affect the lives of Guyanese until the results of the March 2020 Elections are announced. Granger may become hot and bothered then, but I can assure him that many will be unbothered by his exit from the national stage.

Respectfully
Robin Singh

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