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Action taken by Glenn Lall is an integral aspect of the workings of a democracy

Jan 15, 2022 Letters

Dear Editor,

Kaieteur News – Glenn Lall, Kaieteur News Publisher is going for broke. On Thursday, he got in the face of PPP/C Government and Exxon, when he placed matters before the High Court. There is a host of concerns that he could have targeted but taxes are what he decided to make the centerpiece of his ongoing battle, some would say full out war, that he has been waging long and tirelessly from the trenches of his sometimes-besieged newspaper, and his own version of a one-man parliament, which is the radio station in the network he owns.
At a general level, his application takes aim at and combines provisions in the Tax Act, the Financial Administration (Audit) Act, the Petroleum Exploration and Production Act, the Petroleum Agreement itself, the Prevention of Discrimination Act, and the Constitution of Guyana to assert violations of provisions in the law. He has taken the lead, and fired yet another salvo in his continuing crusade against what he sees and fervently believes is an abomination of an oil contract, and that which is debilitating to the welfare of Guyanese today and yet unborn. To a considerable extent, a good number of Guyanese from all walks of life, and at every level in this society, have quietly agreed with him from the protection of the shadows, and have cheered him on. Now comes the hour of test to determine what Guyanese are made of, and what they stand for, if anything, besides letting their neighbour do the heavy lifting and run ahead alone with the risks.
A most sensitive and meaningful segment of this society that should find it convenient, indeed compulsory, to have a say must be the legal fraternity, either from under the umbrella of recognised representative bodies, or as individual practitioners. In both instances, whatever they do or don’t do should sound a clarion call as to how people view the oil situation (a sturdy euphemism) in Guyana, and whether they see it as a call to arms and the linking of arms (or more sitting on their hands) to signal that we agree with this step taken by Lall and we are with him on this. I think that a powerful statement would be made through the filing of supporting briefs (amicus curiae) at the Appeal Court level, which is the first step in the journey of what was started on Thursday. As I see it this is going to go all the way, which is going to put the PPP/C Government and its brain trust in a precarious position. If they are true patriots, then they should not fight this to the death, but be ready to throw in the towel and present the holding to Exxon, be it from here or elsewhere in the region.
It would be that the Court(s) have spoken, and we are loathe to go against it, since it would call into question the very institutions on which the society is based. Should this not pan out as anticipated judicially, then I suspect there will be resorting to other legal mechanism to overthrow that hangs over the nation’s head and strangles it. Meanwhile, ordinary citizens also have an opportunity to manifest their mettle, since they are the ones who would lose the most and benefit the most. They must not be silent or detached, not on this occasion. It is time for all interested and conscientious Guyanese to put aside party loyalties and to place both their own interests and that of the nation first. The PPP/C Government came into being as part of the democratic process. The action taken by Glenn Lall is an integral aspect of the workings of a democracy also. We shall see.

Sincerely,
GHK Lall

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