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KN Publisher calls for nationwide ‘lights out’ protest against looting of Guyana’s resources
Kaieteur News – Publisher of the Kaieteur News (KN) Glenn Lall has called on citizens to participate in a country-wide ‘lights out’ protest every night for one month.
Kaieteur News Publisher, Glenn Lall
The protest is to show citizens’ disapproval of the country’s politicians’ inability to properly manage the country’s wealth and natural resources. He called on citizens to turn their lights off for five minutes every night at 19:00h for one month.
Lall, an outspoken advocate for better resource management made this call on Wednesday evening during the airing of his radio programme, the Glenn Lall Show.
The Publisher noted among other things that Guyana’s politicians continue to refuse to renegotiate the meager 2% oil contract with ExxonMobil. Lall stressed that despite repeated calls for action, there has been no effort to install the country’s own meters at the oil pumps, ring-fence the oil projects, or collect taxes and cap the exorbitant equity or interest charges on Exxon’s investments—measures that could make every Guyanese “super, super rich.”
Lall said, “In what many are calling a heist … it seems the riches of Guyana’s oil wealth are reserved for Exxon and other foreign companies, leaving locals with scraps.”
He questioned the political leaders’ vision for the wealth.
“Scrubbing Exxon’s toilets, cleaning their patios, washing their yards, and spraying for mosquitoes, rats, and roaches, that’s the reality of the riches being offered from Guyana’s trillion-dollar oil sector, but the situation grows even direr,” the KN Publisher said.
Turning his attention to electricity, the Kaieteur News Publisher noted that for years, the government has subsidized billions from the national treasury to ease the burden on citizens by lowering costs of water, electricity, and fuel.
However, the businessman pointed that citizens are not the only ones benefiting from these subsidies.
“…Foreign companies, including ExxonMobil, who are already walking away with billions of US dollars in profits from Guyana’s resources…These foreign giants, already reaping unimaginable wealth from our resources, enjoy the same subsidies meant for struggling Guyanese. Adding insult to injury, to meet the growing demand for electricity for these businesses, the government is renting power ships, buying electricity at 50 cents per kilowatt-hour, only to sell it back to at 40 cents per kilowatt-hour,” he said.
Lall said too that “The same happens with fuel”.
“The government is digging deeper into the nation’s pockets to import more fuel, only to hand it out to these foreign companies tax-free. And we call this “development”? Guyana is not developing; it’s being exploited.”
He noted that the money the country earns from the meager 2% royalty, all disappears back into subsidies, supporting the very companies that are draining our wealth.
“We are spending more out of our pockets than we are receiving, all to provide services for these foreign corporations, while our people are left to scrub their toilets just to survive. And this in a country rich with gold, diamonds, timber, bauxite, and oil,” Lall said.
He continued, “Where is Guyana heading, brothers and sisters? Are we on the path to collapse or total disaster? Our wealth is being siphoned off right before our eyes, and yet, most remain silent. Is this the future we want for our children? Is this the legacy we are leaving behind for the next generation?”
The publisher therefore called for a nationwide protest. He explained, “We aren’t taking to the streets because the heat wave from the oil operations and climate change is unbearable.”
Instead, Lall said that for the month of October, starting Wednesday, October 1, and “let’s take a stand by turning off our lights for five minutes every night at 7 PM. Whether you are at home, at work, or in a place of worship, turn off your lights and light a candle if you have to. Even if you are driving, stop for five minutes and leave your park lights on.
Let’s send a clear, powerful message to these four leaders—we won’t take this looting anymore. We demand a full stop to these giveaways so that every Guyanese, now and for generations to come, can live a great life from the resources our Creator blessed us with,” the Publisher stated.
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