People like Jeffrey, Hinds and the ordinary Joe

Jul 20, 2020 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

Every academic in and out of Guyana should see the four-month election impasse as a priceless fountain of information that takes in psychology and philosophy. If there weren’t these four months, the hidden destructive traits buried deep in the psyche of so many popular, eminent, educated, or status-possessed Guyanese would have never been revealed and Guyanese would have gone on respecting them for traits they do not possess.
As both an academic and social activist, these four months have been an exceptional learning period for me that have no parallel in my life in Guyana. I have become an instant iconoclast and revisionist after what I saw from sections of the Guyanese nationality.
One of the most researched areas in history is the role of the educated person in the promotion and spread of evil. This area of scholarship took on a fascinating curiosity after the Nazi defeat at the end of World War 2.
There are countless studies which showed that it was highly educated men in Germany that promulgated theories of race superiority and genetic inferiority among human beings of different ethnicities.
It will remain a mystery in philosophy as to why the author of one of the greatest philosophy books ever written – Martin Heidegger’s “Being and Time” – could have shown sympathy for the Nazi regime and dislike and contempt for another race group, the Jews. You read this book, and it is a phenomenal explanation of the existential nature of life. How could such a deep mind be bigoted?
This is a country with one of the youngest populations in the entire world, with 70 percent being under 35 and half of it being around 18 years old. These young people will be the future leaders for a long time to come.
One hopes that the lessons learnt from the four months of evil that this country has been drowning in, they will internalize the priceless lessons that they would have seen and are seeing.
One of these lessons I will now offer them. Here is my little piece of scholarly advice to 70 percent of the people of my country. The danger in this evil that currently surrounds us has not been generated by those gesticulating semi-educated folks who surround the buildings of GECOM and State House shouting; “Swear in Granger.”
You find such misguided people throughout history. These kinds of people clamoured for Socrates to be executed. But it was the intellectual class whose condemnation of Socrates the ruling class listened to. It was these types of learned persons that instigated the masses in Athens.
Tomorrow, the crowds will gather again at State House and the sermon will be;
“Swear in Granger” but they are also those who don’t take to the streets, who are armed with a higher education but it is through their writings that the evil of the past four months is still alive.
I confess I became cold when I read GECOM Commissioner, Desmond Trotman, citing Walter Rodney’s endorsement for Trotman’s conduct in GECOM and he ended his unapologetic epistle with the words, “Walter Rodney Lives!” Mr. Trotman said that he believes what he is doing in GECOM will find acceptance by Dr. Nigel Westmaas and the iconic Moses Bhagwan. I wrote to both of them telling them they owe it to Rodney to denounce Trotman for the use of their names. They simply wrote back to say, “I got your mail.”
When the Americans announced visa sanctions, Dr. Henry Jeffrey responded with a statement that such a policy could intimidate the judiciary.
It was immense ignorance on two levels. First, the case was already decided by Guyana’s highest court, the CCJ, therefore it was an abuse of the judicial system. Secondly, the stratagem is to prolong the four months of evil by going to court for frivolous reasons.
Dr. David Hinds with each expression on the election crisis is sprouting unmitigated racism and promoting dangerous incitements. Trade union leader, Lincoln Lewis, is an unashamed embracer of the March 13 declaration which includes scientific evidence of illegal conduct by Mingo. I am still at a loss at what Eusi Kwayana has become. He replied to me asserting that he is not in possession of the facts to denounce rigged elections in Guyana.
Drs. Alissa Trotz and Arif Bulkan wrote a long sermon to remind us what party domination has done to Guyana but not one word was assigned to the four months of evil that is smothering Guyana. Dr. Bulkan is a law professor.
Our women group put more emphasis on Ruel Johnson’s behaviour than the four months of evil. There is a fault line in anthropology. Its name is the Guyanese nationality.

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