Get Mr. Norton and his colleagues to change or change them out

Apr 30, 2021 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,

Please allow me a response to that letter from Aubrey Norton entitled, “All must oppose the creeping economic apartheid in Guyana” which appeared in the Kaieteur News of Monday 24thApril. In that article, Mr. Norton continues his thoughtless and uncontrolled statements, which can kindle the fears, suspicions and insecurities amongst all Guyanese – particularly at this time Afro-Guyanese and others who support the PNCR/APNU+AFC.
The PPP from its inception has been aware that such fears, suspicions and insecurities would arise naturally in a country with a population composed like ours, and from its beginning, the PPP/PPP/C has been striving to bring together people from all groups in Guyana to work together at building our country. In that process, we would grow and develop ourselves and create the experiences and bonds, which would in time be the substance of the overarching sense of being Guyanese of Guyana.
It is easy for Mr. Norton to make those charges of discrimination, marginalisation, economic genocide, economic apartheid but he does so at significant cost to our people and country as a whole and more so, those reckless accusations sap the enthusiasm, initiative and application of their supporters – Afro-Guyanese and others. Those declarations of Mr. Norton in Social Media had come to notice on April 12th and on April 14th on the sidelines of the installation of the Local Government Commission, H.E President, Irfaan Ali addressed those reckless charges.
In the above-mentioned letter, Mr. Norton claims that the President has gone quiet since he provided evidence of PPP racism. I checked with the Office of the President but did not find any such submission. Mr. Norton’s charges that, quote:
“The PPP’s action of depriving African Guyanese and indigenous communities of the resources to develop small and medium-sized businesses and focusing them on handouts and the development of playing fields and sport, in general, is a clear path to creating dependent and marginalised African and Indigenous communities while the PPP gets richer and dominates and control our society.”
Would have been amusing, grandstanding and posturing were they not so dangerous, playing to the still ever-present emotional fears and suspicions in the minds of all our people, within and without our country. If only five percent of his intended audience were to be galvanised by those reckless accusations our Guyana would be plunged into another period of troubles.
Our PPP Government’s programmes for sports, games, playing fields, scholarships and assistance to small and medium-sized businesses are publicised in the media and available to all our citizens. And the Government has been going further: Ministers have been going out across the country to bring attention to them. Minister Juan Edghill was in Kwakwani and Linden last week telling about the 20,000 online scholarships and this weekend he and the Minister of the Public Service will be leading teams to those locations to register interests and receive applications. With respect to small and medium scale businesses, the Ministry of Tourism Industry and Commerce, last February held training sessions in Linden for people from 200 plus businesses and is processing 50 plus applications for grants. The fact that Region 10 is largely Afro-Guyanese, overwhelmingly voting for the PNC unto now, has been in no way deterring our provision of what our Government has to our citizens of that Region.
Concerning his allegations that this PPP/C Government has been taking away land “legally” acquired by Afro-Guyanese and supporters of the APNU+AFC, the PPP had stated repeatedly that subsequent to the NCM of December 21, 2018 and more so after March 02, 2020, the Coalition Government had no authority to transact new business. We have put the transactions of that period under review; most have been allowed to continue. This PPP/C Government could not and would not want to take away any properties fully legally acquired. There were a number of sales that were attempted to be completed in a great hurry, with little or no cash transfers and in some cases without the knowledge of the beneficiaries. A number of those beneficiaries have entered a return–reverse and start-over procedure. We are, firstly, for growth and development of all – resolution and regularisation, not “take-away” has been the direction of this PPP/C Government.
Mr. Norton raises again the question of the PPP treating bauxite and sugar differently, which I have responded to a number of times before and he paints the proposed short, direct, quick Bartica to Timehri trail link as a bypass of Linden and de-emphasising of the Linden – Lethem road. He ignores completely the publicised costly asphalt surfacing of the Linden-Mabura section, which is to commence.
Concerning the bauxite issues, we, the PPP/C Government can say again with a clear conscience that we have treated bauxite and bauxite communities equitably. Coming into Office in 1992, we inherited covenants committed to by the outgoing PNC, which in 1994 required us to cease and desist from all Government subsidies to the bauxite sector and to close it down. The PPP/C did not comply, but violated those covenants and had to find ways that would pass muster, to continue subsidies to the bauxite operations and communities until core-partners for their privatisation were found – BOSAI and RUSAL – about the mid-2000s. We regretted the disturbances in Aroaima in 2009 and all that followed, which have brought us today to the effective closure of those operations up the Berbice River. The Union leaders have not been blameless and must shoulder much of the responsibility for what occurred. Many seemed to think that they were in the days of the late 1960s and early 1970s, leading up to the nationalisations of the foreign-owned bauxite companies then, when no doubt with some instigation, they were doing and getting away with a lot that would not normally have been acceptable. It set the stage for the recurring troubles in the bauxite sector after nationalisation. These are different times. APNU+AFC had let the Aroaima situation stand over 2015 to 2020. I know of no new consideration that should lead the PPP/C Government to do differently now.
It is in his clutching at straws in the way he portrays the proposed Bartica to Timehri link that one can discern Mr. Norton’s emotional fear of losing out in the growth and development of our people and country. Both Linden and Bartica are gateways to our hinterland, Linden more to the south and east, Bartica more to the south-west, west and north-west: and indeed Bartica has the longer, stronger historical claim to be the gateway. There is an existing road link between Bartica and Georgetown – a journey of about six hours, about 55 miles of trail, one barge crossing and 65 miles of surfaced road. The proposed Bartica-Timehri link should provide a shorter journey of about three hours, constituted of two barge crossings, about 28 miles of trail and 25 miles of surfaced road. The Bartica-Timehri link has been the obvious next step as we develop in stages, a network of trails and roads across our country.
When the PPP/C left office in 2015 we were leaning towards the installation of new “lane and a half” wide steel and concrete bridges throughout the length of the Linden Lethem road, including one across the Kurupukari, as our next major development. On returning to office in August 2020, we found that the APNU+AFC had chosen the surfacing of the Linden-Mabura section as their first stage of development and arrangements were far advanced. The PPP/C chose not to make a change but have quickly concluded the arrangements for financing this hefty US$190 million project (UK 66 grant + CDB 112 loan+ GoG 12) ensuring its early commencement. Further, even as I was writing this, HE President Ali has announced the Government’s commitment to replacing all the existing wooden bridges along the Linden-Lethem trail with concrete bridges so that the benefits of the surfaced Linden to Mabura section would not be diminished by problems along the Mabura to Lethem section. The PPP is investing a lot in keeping Linden as a gateway, striving to develop the Millie’s Hideout to Wiruni landing trail and the Kwakwani to Orealla to Moleson creek trail, which has been recently announced.
If Linden and Region 10, Afro-Guyanese Afro-Communities and supporters of the APNU+AFC do not take part and benefit equitably in the prosperity which the PPP/C is working for, it would be because Mr. Norton and other leaders of the PNC, including most distressingly young Amanza Walton-Desir and James Bond, have been continuing to play to the natural fears, suspicions and insecurities of their supporters. Their supporters must cause them to change or change them out. I understand that a glorious opportunity is at hand. Miraculous things can and do happen. I think of the two years from 1990 to 1992 when I was asked every day – you think that the PNC will ever allow you and Cheddi to win any election? And if by some miracle Cheddi and the PPP were to win – you think dem people would ever make you their Prime Minister? Those seemingly impossible things did happen.

Samuel A.A. Hinds
Former President and Former Prime Minister

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