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One people, one nation, one destiny…not!

Jun 28, 2020 Features / Columnists, News, The Story within the Story

By Leonard Gildarie

Former US president, Franklin D. Roosevelt said: “Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and senators and congressmen and government officials, but the voters of this country.”
In a few days’ time, it will be four months since March 2nd, 2020.
That day and the ones that followed will forever be etched in the minds of world. That is because at the crossroad, we took the wrong fork.
Our leaders decided to do the unthinkable. We will come back to this.
Yesterday, I was stuck for hours on what to say. We have since December 21st, 2018, when the country experienced the passage of a no-confidence motion in the National Assembly, been stuck in a hole.
Every week that goes by, it becomes even more harder to justify giving our people hope.
The entire world gaped at us as the story…denials, court cases, public statements, diplomatic aggression…played itself out.
Today, we should not be a proud people.
Our national motto…One People, One Nation, One Destiny…has been dumped and discarded.
Moral values, legacy, the respect for the laws and greed have taken the lead.
There are arguments that a few politicians have split our people and there is no “one people”.
It would not be too difficult to think that we are being forced to think: ‘what is our destiny?’
There can be no other explanations for what played out in the last 18 months.
Yes, it has been 18 months since the December 21, 2018, no-confidence motion.
The COVID-19 lockdown could not have come at a worse time though, it was clearly capitalized on.
People have become jaded and distracted, with tens of thousands of our people barely scraping by. For many, it is a shame to beg but the options are running out.
I turn my head and ears away sometimes to the pleadings of people that I know intimately who are asking for help. Teachers, office staffers, everybody…they are feeling it. There is little I can do.
It would take an entire country to solve the problems.
I could not help but reflect on the very pertinent quote from former US president, Franklin D. Roosevelt: “Let us never forget that government is ourselves and not an alien power over us. The ultimate rulers of our democracy are not a President and senators and congressmen and government officials, but the voters of this country.”
Guyana looked on with shock as chair of CARICOM, Mia Mottley, who is also Prime Minister of Barbados, issued a strong statement on Guyana’s elections.
CARICOM has found itself in a very uncomfortable position.
It has one of its founder members, Guyana, almost at rogue status. The headquarters of CARICOM is located right next door to where the national recount of ballots cast for March 2nd, was taking place at the Arthur Chung International Conference Centre.
How dare Mottley? She was hanged out to dry. Overstepping her boundaries. The accusations were coming fast and furious.
Other diplomats have been accused and encouraged to leave Guyana.
Never mind we invited Mottley and CARICOM to intervene in our elections.
The CARICOM is not alone. The US, Canada, Britain and the European Union, along with Commonwealth, the Organisation of American States, The Carter Center, and a slew of respected diplomats have all joined the calls.
The entire world, it seems, are at the throats of the coalition.
Again, we come back to legacy.
The coalition, and I have many dear friends in them, must be mindful that Guyana needs a strong, vibrant opposition to police the administration.
We need to look at our contracts, our oil money, our gold in the backdam, our bauxite.
It will be a one-seat majority. The options are tantalizing.
Use the time to regroup, coalesce.
There are young, energetic bright new leaders from the emerging parties.
Can we dare to dream about the slate being erased and sins forgiven, all for the sake of the country?
As FDR so rightly said, the voters have the power, not the politicians.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

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