Freddie Kissoon deserves an honour for his role in exposing electoral fraud in Guyana

Mar 09, 2021 Letters

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Dear Editor,

Reference is made to “My nomination for national award is Dr. Vishnu Bisram.” Contrary to what Mr. Ramracha pens, I believe Freddie Kissoon is very deserving of honour for his role in exposing electoral fraud in Guyana.
I am humbled by a nomination for the Order of Democracy or any other honour for my varied roles to benefit the Guyanese diaspora and the nation. There are others who are also deserving, perhaps even more than I am.
But I must say that my fifty plus years of contributions to the Guyanese nation at home and in the diaspora was not premised on an award or national honours. I worked on behalf of the diaspora in spite of not being recognized by successive governments. If I had to wait to be honoured in order to service the nation, then I would not have performed. Government officials generally recognize friends, family, and those with whom they derive personal material benefits. I not only volunteered my service to Guyana and her diaspora but to other people and nations as well. Various Indian organizations approached me for honours in Trinidad, Guyana, America, Canada, and India, and I declined. One must engage in selfless acts, not self-serving acts. Regrettably, there are not too many who subscribe to the former.
Many of those who were honoured in the past were/are not deserving of any award and several individuals who contributed significantly to Guyana were never honoured. Some bought honours; they contributed huge amounts of money to politicians and were honoured. How could anyone who participated in or condoned election rigging or served an illegal government be honoured? And where is their sense of integrity to accept such honour? The actions of some honourees were destructive to the nation. Were/are they not ashamed? Some jumped from party to party and were honoured.
A committee should be empanelled to evaluate nominations for any honour. Objective criteria should be established for any honour including the one now proposed by President, Irfaan Ali. A panel of professionals with integrity should be constituted to determine whether nominees have met the criteria.
My role in championing free and fair elections and democracy began with the 1968 electoral fraud and has continued till this day. I witnessed the rigging of 1973 and experienced electoral bullyism and intimidation with guns from armoured carriers directed at us in Ankerville protesting the electoral fraud. I left Guyana in 1977 to pursue tertiary education but that did not deter me from championing democracy for the homeland. In fact, far away from the clutches of the hands of the dictator, I became more emboldened to struggle for free and fair elections in my country of birth.
At City College, in September 1987, a small group of us, albeit all Indians, formed a club whose primary objective was the liberation of Guyana from the throes of that oppressive racist dictatorship. Initially, our group was at odds with the left wing ACG, the PPP affiliate body. Our group was pro-America and pro-West as we recognized that without Washington’s blessings, democracy would not return to Guyana. And if any party or group ‘cuss’ America, Washington would not restore democratic governance in Guyana. Only a handful of us was committed and dedicated to the struggle for free and fair elections in Guyana; we did it almost on a full-time basis and we spent our personal funds during those fifteen difficult years to restore democracy to the homeland. Later, our group would collaborate with the ACG and support groups of other parties such as WPA, URP, NRP, TUF, DLM, and PDM in championing the restoration of democracy in Guyana. While other groups folded up with the victory of the PPP in October 1992, our movement continued for several years longer as we sought to institutionalize democracy in Guyana.
Several individuals from the varied support groups played significant roles in that struggle against the dictatorship. They were not as active in 2020 as I was but were concerned about the five months attempted fraud. I worked the phones pleading with movers and shakers in Auckland, Delhi, London, Washington, Ottawa, Georgetown, the Caribbean and more. I travelled around the Caribbean a lot, conducting polls and know politicians. My role from mid-January 2020 to August 2, 2020 in the democratic outcome of the March 2 election, that was announced mid-day on August 2, will remain a secret to protect individuals who worked behind the scenes to declare the right outcome. They trusted me. The people who I worked with in confidence saved our democracy by having the right declaration made that led to the swearing in of Irfaan Ali as President. I have no doubt about their role. I was constantly in touch with key officials up to the morning of August 2 of expected proceedings. There were some doubts but ‘all panned out’ well. Several diplomats in Guyana and Prime Ministers of the region, as well as Kaieteur News (for exposure), and others, must be honoured for protecting democracy.
Among colleagues of the 1970s, I may be the only one from the 1970s who remain the most active and steadfast in that struggle to protect democracy in the homeland. The others have largely given up hope on Guyana. I believe that everyone has redeeming qualities and that one day politicians would do everything right for the country. I don’t know when that day will arrive and if it would ever be in my lifetime. What I have seen, heard, and experienced from some politicians is not encouraging.
Someone high up in the government called me a day after President Ali announced his intention to grant the OD, telling me that if any Guyanese deserve the OD, it would be me and that he would nominate my name. I would not hold my breath. Ravi Dev, Baytoram Ramharack, among others, are deserving of OD for their roles up to 1992 and beyond. There is a Guyanese scholar in Washington area who also worked the phone on Mike Kozak and the State Department to issue statements against electoral fraud. Out of precaution that critics could seek his dismissal from his university of employment, he did not use his name or made his activism public. My name was used in several memos to government officials although he was the main author. His role should be acknowledged as was that of several others who approached their members of Congress to issue statements expressing concern about attempted fraud. There was also a gentleman on the East Coast, a contractor, whose name shall remain unknown, who fed me useful information about planned rigging. His information and intelligence gathering proved invaluable in counter measures to foil rigging. Regrettably, his role in saving democracy can’t be acknowledged as his life would be endangered.
Yours truly,
Dr. Vishnu Bisram

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