Irfaan Ali is not an ‘invisible’ candidate

Oct 17, 2019 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,

While it is wise to not give credence to the absurd by replying, an editorial in another newspaper which appeared on 15th October deserves a response to keep the rabid in check. Headlined “Will the real Irfaan Ali please stand up”, the editorial seeks to revive a failed APNU/AFC narrative. This is not the first such editorial and since it irks me to see such waste of ink and paper, I will seek to give clarity to the clouded in a bid to end the abuse of the state’s resources for the APNU/AFC campaign of misinformation.
The first contention is that Bharrat Jagdeo wants to be President of Guyana again and is seeking to install a proxy leader. It was Jagdeo who as President, piloted and assented to Section 2 of the Constitution (Amendment) (No 4) Act of 2000, which was a constitutional amendment to Article 90 of the Constitution of Guyana, commonly referred to as the Term limit amendment. Bharrat Jagdeo was engaged gainfully and chose to deviate from his new career path to dedicate his energies to the organisation and country that provided him with life’s opportunities, The People’s Progressive Party and the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. Jagdeo serves as General Secretary of the PPP and holds the Constitutional office of Leader of the Opposition in continued service of the nation.
The second contention is that Irfaan Ali is an ‘invisible’ candidate. Irfaan Ali has visited over one hundred and fifty communities and villages since his election as PPP presidential candidate. His opponent, David Granger has visited five and is now scrambling to play catch up by utilising hundreds of millions of dollars from the treasury per visit. For all the money he spends, Granger cannot get people to converse freely; Granger’s visits to communities are characterised by heavy police presence and barricades. Irfaan Ali, in contrast, engages the people of Guyana, supporters, well-wishers and the undecided with equal warmth, Irfaan is no elitist, he comes from the people and remains grounded.
Bharrat Jagdeo will continue to hold his weekly press conferences that deal with his constitutional responsibilities to the people of Guyana. Irfaan Ali has already made speeches on the campaign trail (before the cowardly delay via the CCJ) and will climb onto the hustings and give countless more in this longest of campaigns. Mr. Granger can look, listen and learn since his attempt at connecting to a rent-a-crowd fell flat in Linden.
The last contention is that Irfaan Ali is not capable of managing the country: Irfaan Ali is the most experienced and accomplished person ever to run for a first-term presidency, his accomplishments are well known by many who live in housing settlements developed and delivered during his tenure as Minister of Housing; by those who drink water from the numerous wells and treatment plants delivered by Irfaan; by those who tout the phrase ‘’Guyana, South America Undiscovered” and who know it is policy developed by Irfaan Ali during his tenure that has led to Guyana being declared the Number One destination in Eco-tourism in the world.
Editor, Irfaan Ali is an experienced speaker, who can hold his own in any forum. Should David Granger be so emboldened, debates would be most welcome between himself and Irfaan Ali. The subjects of education, healthcare, cash transfers, agriculture, infrastructure, constitutional reform, and foreign policy are all up for debate, I would advise candidate Granger to read the Oil contracts before he makes the foray, however. We will await the response to this direct challenge for debates with David Granger.

Respectfully
Robin Singh

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Latest News