Scores of Essequibians join Ray Daggers on Day 11 of walk against Exxon Contract

May 15, 2023 News

– Walk continues today from La Union, Essequibo, Region 2

A Pandit showing his support for a change of the ExxonMobil Contract.

Kaieteur News – Ray Daggers and KNEWS Publisher Glenn Lall were on Sunday welcomed to the Essequibo Coast, Region Two with Mala (A garland of flowers placed around the necks of gods in the India), as scores of Essequibians turned up to join them on day 11 of a walk against the lopsided ExxonMobil Contract.

The two men were greeted by the Essequibians at Supenaam where they began the walk around 09:00 hrs.

Some accompanied Daggers with Tassa drumming, while others provided hot dhal and rice with choka and hot peppers. Others brought cash to purchase fluids for the journey and there were those who brought cases of water and energy drinks.

While some joined Daggers in the walk for a change of the contract, others followed behind in their vehicles.

The Essequibians were very vocal as well, calling on the government to change the oil deal Guyana signed with ExxonMobil in 2015.

Along the way, a Pandit (A religious leader) came out to greet Mr. Daggers and blessed his walk for a renegotiation.

He urged his fellow Essequibians and Guyanese at large, “I call upon all of you that are listening to please, please get ExxonMobil to review this contract.”

According to the Pandit, “We a get a whipping now from ExxonMobil and then our very, very grandchildren, they will probably get more than a whipping, we nah know if our grandchildren will even get grass to eat, probably they might have to eat this road.”

Another woman, Faneeta waited in the sun at a bus shed to join Daggers. She said that she is walking for a change of the Contract because she has been struggling all her life to feed and send her children to school.

She said during the live coverage of the walk that she is forced to have multiple relationships with men just to make ends meet.

Some from Abram Zuil took the microphone to call out their fellow villagers to get rid of their fear and join the walk for a change.

Apart from the Essequibians who turned up in their numbers, at least seven “Berbicians traveled from their county to join Ray Daggers on the final leg of his journey.

One of them said that he started traveling at midnight just to make it on time to start the journey from Supenaam at 09:00hrs.

Together, they walked seventeen point five miles with Ray Daggers from Supenaam until he called it a day around 15:00hrs at La Union Village.

It was by far the largest turnout since Ray Daggers started his ‘Cross Country Walk’ last Thursday from Molesen Creek, East Corentyne, Berbice for a change of the Exxon Contract.

The turnout came after Daggers on Saturday said that his message to Essequibians for the final leg of his journey is that Guyanese must put aside their differences and unite to fight for a renegotiation of the ExxonMobil contract.

“We want to make them (residents of Essequibo) aware that we have a common enemy. We are fighting against a common enemy”, Daggers said while adding that all Guyanese must put aside their differences and unite in the fight for the renegotiation of the Stabroek Block Contract with American Oil Giant ExxonMobil”, Daggers had told Kaieteur News on Saturday.

After seeing the huge turnout on Sunday, Daggers said “the fear is being dispelled in people, our courage has harnessed their fear and they have dispelled it”.

So far Daggers has covered a total distance of 180 miles on foot and will continue his walk today from La Union Village, Essequibo Coast. Daggers is hoping to make it Charity by the end of the day.

Born in Mahaicony, Daggers lived for quite some time overseas but paid attention to key occurrences in Guyana. The 65-year-old man said he was inspired to undertake the walk against the Exxon contract by the unrelenting efforts by Lall, who has been fighting for a change to the Exxon contract.

“Mr. Lall has been putting forth the facts and he has done so without any help from government agencies, but with the help of his staff, and he has been providing a great service to this nation,” Daggers had said before setting out on his walk.