The essence of Government’s inadequacies

Dec 03, 2021 Editorial

Kaieteur News – The word on which we focus today is ‘inadequate.’ It was used recently to describe what the PPP Government has put before the public, and as carried by this paper: “Proposed amendments to elections laws inadequate -Civil Society Group” (KN November 29). Inadequate is a rather civil and measured word, as one would expect from a civil society entity, and as they apply to just released draft amendments to the Representation of the People Act (ROPA), and as mild it is, it is a good start to point to many other matters of crucial significance to this society, where so many areas are in need of urgent attention and remediation.
When proposed amendments to elections laws are ‘inadequate’ that means, by any definition, that they are far from acceptable, because they lack the essentials that could make a difference in those areas that have agitated us, devastated us. All that inadequate proposed amendments will succeed in achieving is that the divided and hurting state in which this society exists will continue without letup, but at more intensely furious levels. For what the Government introduced to the public, and then proudly defended, is nothing short of an insult creates more animosity, and keeps the racial fires at high temperature in this country. It is obvious that, when opportunity presents itself to fix glaring weaknesses with some degree of honesty and national objectives in mind, all that the PPP Government can come up with are proposals and drafts and amendments that possess neither substance nor strength. They don’t even have credibility; so partisan and sickly they are. Such handiwork of a cunning Government more than enrages, more that divides, and more that reflects how shabby and shambolic are its pretenses; these exercises in Government trickeries. They are a reflection of how determined PPP leaders are to keep this society divided, citizens pitted against one another, and all to their advantage.
The problem and concern is that inadequate goes beyond elections amendments, since this same inadequacy, this ramshackle way of governing, reaches into many other areas of governance. It confirms the defining and continuing characteristic of PPP leadership: what deceives Guyanese. First, it is through what set their expectations at some reasonable level, and then come up with what dashes those expectations to pieces. Second, this occurs time and again, without shame, and with great persistency. And third, it is made possible through a mechanism that delivers more and more of what no self-respecting government and no self-respecting national political leader would wish to be identified with, so suspect is it.
We invite our fellow Guyanese, and others who are here (but not native born) to look at some selected aspects of what masquerades for national governance, open governance, and sound and honest governance in the last year and a half approximately. The first that we make a start with is the natural resources (gold) sector, and look at what passes for presidential and ministerial wisdom in this rich space. Agreements are made with foreign companies and no Guyanese is aware of this, save for cronies benefiting from dealings that are secret and by the back door. The most recent example of something like this involves a contract signed with a foreign company, and months later, it is held close to the chest by PPP leaders. Only they know why this is necessary, how this can be described as ‘clean governance’ or ethical leadership. That is not merely inadequate by any yardstick, but has to be classified as the work of imbeciles engaging in the insipid, possibly with what borders on the invidious, meaning, treasonous.
The same inadequate (at a minimum) state is what can be said about how our oil wealth is managed at the political leadership level. To be fair, both the past Coalition Government and today’s PPP Government, have failed us miserably with their oversight of this oil. We know little, we lack confidence, we get nothing. Neither money nor specks of prosperity nor truth are coming from leaders in government. Guyana’s oil is now a pirate cargo, with savage and barbarous pirates holding sway. Likewise, procurement and contract awards, and all amounts to much more than inadequate.

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