Weaponising state advertisements

Nov 04, 2024 Features / Columnists, The GHK Lall Column

By GHK Lall

Kaieteur News- There is always this faint hope that Bhar-rat Jagdeo will learn. No matter how remote, I hope for him, in him, that he will come to his senses. As a leader. As a man. As a citizen in this madhouse called Guyana. Why strive to be the best representation of what is vicious, what is malicious? In its previous vindictive application, the stopping of State ads to SN and KN fell on rocky ground. No traction.

More digging in of the heels and resisting what was interpreted to be a test of professional character, a challenge of will. In its earlier exercise, the yanking of State ads made Jagdeo look worse than he is and helped others (SN and KN) to be better than they were, even than they thought they were capable of, could deliver. Experience has shown that the punitive has utility that lasts for a time only, and then makes matters worse than they were. For someone who has been around the world, who may even fancy himself the king of Guyana’s world, it is regrettable that Mr. Jagdeo could be so lacking in circumspection. I think he knows better, is a better man than he appears, whatever his political calculations push him to do.

Back some people against a wall and the steel in their backbone gain strengths that they never knew they had, then still more. If Bhar-rat Jagdeo doesn’t know that, then he doesn’t know anything. He should have learned that from Guyanese who don’t take too kindly to bullies and their cheap intimidations. To resort to threats about rearranging the State ad allocations is a lowdown trick, one unbecoming of a former head of state. The Mirror and the New Nation are sure to have their following.

But are they the best newspaper forums to give Guyanese, the people paying for State ads, the best value for their shilling? Further, for the PPP General Secretary and nation’s chief policymaker to place KN alongside the Mirror and New Nation, political papers through and through, is a little low even for a man like him. Some have opined that the vice president is desperate. That is because he has the fullest knowledge of the nightmares with his handprints all over them, which he has heaped on Guyanese.

He is morbidly fearful of challengers to his hold over Guyanese, and his increasingly shakier perch in this country. My concern is that a desperate man is a dangerous man. Yanking State ads is the white-collar edition of a special kind of violence. As many Guyanese know, Jagdeo’s legacy is one where his hands have considerable blood on them. He threatens to pull State Ads in his untiring efforts to force the president’s hand against the latter’s best judgment. What then? What is next to be expected from an increasingly shrill and strident Jagdeo? Who is in line to be targeted and how?

The Guyana Police Force is a state institution that is in a most distressed condition. It is a place that could benefit from straightforward attention and action by the vice president. If the policymaker pretends not to know, then he is in bad company. Because the rest of Guyana knows, could sell him an encyclopedia or two on what is going wrong there. It is one of the struggling national entities that could use his energies, his long years of accumulated administrative knowhow. For emphasis, administrative knowhow, not more clever political shenanigans. The private sector has done well on its own, so its members would be better off doing without Dr. Jagdeo’s prescription on how to go about their business. Again, if they want the best value for their ad dollars. There is no question that private sector businesses and leaders may be heavily beholden to Vice President Jagdeo for different reasons. Nevertheless, they must have that little something in them that issues a warning. Ceasing to send their ads to KN (as the vice president has cajoled) would reflect poorly on their business skills, and their personal duty to doing the right thing. When powerful politicians are done talking and instigating, there is still the ethical imperative, and living with oneself (and family). There is a song with the title of “Walking in the footsteps of a fool” that applies in this situation. Jagdeo is a far cry from being a fool, though he comes perilously close on occasion. Threatening to pull State ads from KN is one such unwise instance. Being petty, petulant, and puerile are the rough judgments that he attracts upon himself.

I think that Bhar-rat Jagdeo needs to take a timeout, give himself room to take stock. He is not in a good place. The more he rants, the more he strips himself naked. The more the threatens, the more some Guyanese laugh in his face. He must find ways to partner with the independent media for a better Guyana. Of course, he must talk and then walk a straight line with the nation’s oil wealth. His troubles are self-inflicted, arise from his commitment to a path that closely resembles Guyana’s racing circuit in South Dakota. Too many twists and turns and there is that curly goose neck, which so wonderfully represents Oil Jagdeo. Think again about those State ads, brother Bhar-rat. Find another way to battle KN. Cleanly. Frankly.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper.)

(Weaponising state advertisements)

Bhar-rat Jagdeo, dangerous man, No traction., professional character, yanking

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