Tacuma Ogunseye responds to Freddie Kissoon

May 19, 2021 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
For some time, I have ignored Mr. Frederick Kissoon and his self-serving attacks on me, the WPA and members of its leadership. I have noted with great repulsion his cowardly and frequent abuse of Brother Eusi Kwayana in the most uncultured and uncivilised manner, even calling him at one point a “monster.” This degeneration in public discourse is unfortunately being facilitated by Kaieteur News. They allow Kissoon to pass his offensive writings as credible polemics and responsible public discourse. However, my concern in this letter is to respond to his Monday May 10, 2021 column, (KN) captioned, “This is what an “objective, honest” take on race relations look like.” In that column, he concocted what could only be called “drivel” which he presents as objective analysis on my position on MP Amanza Walton-Desir’s controversy. Kissoon’s motive is not objective or fair, but driven by his unending desire to be recognised as an Indian “Bad man” and to satisfy his lust for public attention amid an inability to write beyond a few narrow and repetitive topics.
In his column, Kissoon deliberately used a racial construct for his so-call analysis, which he framed as a dispute between an African woman vs. an Indian man, that is, MP Amanza Walton-Desir against Mr. Roshan Khan. This is revisionist deception, since the matter was between PPP/C allies and Ms. Walton-Desir. Having framed the dispute falsely, he then presents my letter in defence of the MP as simply support of a Black woman. He writes, “A Black woman pens a most sordid and condescending racially volcanic statement. An Indian man denounces her for that output. Up comes Mr. Ogunseye, defends the Black woman and labels the Indian’s response as “racist propaganda.” Mr. Kissoon, for your information, we are Africans, not Black. Show the same respect for us as you are doing for Indians. In Kissoon’s mind, every position I take is coming from African political lens. He reduces African leaders, activists and me as sub-humans incapable of complex thinking. The context of my intervention in the Walton-Desir matter is clear. I responded to an orchestrated campaign by the PPP/C and its allies to twist the words of MP Walton-Desir. As I said in my previous letter, the controversy was not about establishing the truth of what was said but promoting racial/political antagonism.
If the controversy was merely an exchange between Walton-Desir and Khan, I would most likely have let it pass. I will contend that if the remarks made by Roshan Khan on his Facebook page were made by an African supporter of the PPP/C and I would consider those remarks as racist and poisonous. Back to Khan, this gentleman is no stranger to controversy, be it racial or otherwise. But what is more important in this matter is the fact that he was a member of the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) and dealt with accusations against other citizens for making racial utterances. He must therefore, be held accountable to higher standards on race/racial issues. If as Kissoon is claiming that Roshan Khan’s Facebook utterances are not race poison, then none of the persons that appeared at the ERC in Khan’s presence engaged in racist remarks.
There is another aspect of Kissoon’s construct which I have chosen not to address, his comparison of what I wrote with what he claimed was said by MP Jermaine Figueira.
But I refer to Mr. Kissoon’s passionate comparison of his hairstyle with that of the British Prime Minister. How more trivial can this columnist get? What does his hairstyle and suits have to do with the matter under discussion? Apparently, in Kissoon’s world, it means a lot. No wonder a letter writer referred to his column as constituting “Stupidity and Foolishness.”
I end by making this observation: if the PPP/C and its allies were interested in objective discussions on what MP Walton-Desir had said, they would in the first instance, have honestly highlighted the exact words used by the MP. Instead, they chose to be wicked and at the same time bullies, displaying their wrong and strong attitude and playing dangerous political games with this sensitive issue of race.
The PPP/C and its allies, having decided that MP Walton’s remarks will be propagandised as “racist,” with which Frederick Kissoon concurs, are seeking to redefine the reality or desiring others to accept their definition of reality. I reiterate my complete rejection of their efforts.
Yours faithfully,
Tacuma Ogunseye

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