Land of plenty, land of anxiety, the hungry

Dec 28, 2025 Features / Columnists, The GHK Lall Column

Hard Truths by GHK Lall

(Kaieteur News) – Thanks to a friend or two, a few social media snippets came down the chimney, tumbled out of Santa’s sack. The senders didn’t have to overload; the snapshots tell of brightly smiling people, those having a great time, glistening with contentment. All’s well with the world. Meaning, their lovely world of personal prosperity and abundance.

Plenty of food and drink, lots of hearty digging in, and celebrating what it is to be where the joy and money circulate. In this land of plenty, this paradise called Guyana, that is one side of the story, the big, beautiful picture of men and women on top of the world, and ensuring that the rest of the world gets a peek into their world of fun and contentment. Among the less than 1% in Guyana’s population, the spotted cream, the flecked names, are easily recognizable. They are from parliament. From the heights of the public service. And, of course, what would a gathering of Guyana’s celebrated and celebrating be without the opulent presence of the private sector? Another quarter, another year, of record profits, of contributing to that circle that makes such achievements smooth and easy.

If only other segments of Guyana, that 45% to 60% of Guyanese could get a fraction of the richness seen in those social media snippets, what a different country Guyana would be! How much more bearable, even enjoyable, would living in this land of plenty be! More than a matter of coping and surviving by the edges of the fingernails. It would be that sought-after situation where my fellow citizens actually live. They actually know and feel and can swear that they prosper in an oil rich country that is the toast of global capitals. Because of one simple fact: it is their lived experience. A fact undeniable because there are no tricks with the number of Guyanese who partake of their great patrimony in a meaningful way. A fact that is certifiable, for there is reality of what is fair and reasonable in the slice of their oil wealth that they receive. Guyana wouldn’t be the grim image that is seen by the world of hopeful Guyanese, and the world beyond, i.e., a tale of two countries.

One that is bright and boisterous in its revelries. The other that is broader and deeper, that Guyana, that’s despondent for lack of the ordinary essentials of living. There are banquets and balls on one side of Guyana in this era of oil’s succulent fruits. Those have become the norm for the people who have to make statements of how good they have it, and not care how anyone else reacts to where they are. Perched right next to that small glittering set in this country, there is the grim and ghostly. The great unmeasured bulk of citizens, who are reduced to strangers and spectators, while their rich inheritance is consumed by neighbors who could give a damn about who haven’t got, who didn’t get much of anything to talk about. So as to publish their endorsements, commendations.

When so much of the national pie has been give (been grabbed) by so few, then how much of what could be left for so many that vested their hopes, only to find themselves hurt again? Then laughed at again, being made into the butt of cruel jokes that add to the dripping contempt of those that they adore and even revere. There has to be a security worker, a weeder of grass, a shop helper, and many others from different streams of Guyanese endeavor, who ask: what about me? When will my turn come to get more than a promise (revised and reengineered) and a pittance that doesn’t help to get anywhere, but keeps fastened in the quicksand of poverty, being hungry, and living with anxiety? In a land of plenty, why am I perpetually hungry, is forced to the indignity of telling my family, don’t pay heed to the beautiful headlines for this is the scanty nature of what we have?

One yard less of road could mean one less hungry Guyanese. One million less for one of those lavish balls or banquets could be that there is a dollar or two more for one Guyanese family. Only then can the bill be legitimately charged against the national treasury. A land this plenty shouldn’t be this hungry, this desultory.

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

Discover more from Kaieteur News

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

anxiety, GHK Lall, hungry, plenty

One thought on “Land of plenty, land of anxiety, the hungry”

Andrew Venton December 30, 2025 at 10:46 am

Well written with a poetic touch and very PROFOUND it takes us on a journey of real sadness for our fellow Guyanese. Where reality is the cruel world that most Guyanese live in , with dreams.and hope all shattered by the way our country is being manage at the end extreme Poverty with no hope in sight. These words that were written to describe our OUR beloved Guyana is real and heartbreaking. If we look at our history so short and yet so destructive with its colonial origin and our slaves and indentured servants (slaves ) Also and the division to rule Base on Race and the diabolic. Perverse way that the two political parties and it’s leaders Burnham and Jagan what semblance of a united Guyanese Force before all of this happened. So today we are left with the REMAINS of these political parties. And this new generation with Guyana’s WEALTH do not know how to manage it’s resources. Their genes have been altered as they are taking our country into the deep blue sea that that Sooner or later can disappear and bring about ruin. What’s more concerning is not this sitting government, or future governments s the LEGACY that they are going to be leaving for our future generations. As I see it only suffering and debts, for our young people to pay back their credititore ,. One of our patriot sons and most imblematic in modern history. The late Dr Walter Rodney, who saw that bringing together working class people of all ethnicity will bring about a strong ,healthy and viable work force that would be stable and bring about prosperity for all. Based on a fair distribution of the riches to all Guyanese. It was impossible so he created the civil rebellion where all Guyanese no matter their color or Race join together bring about a radical change to our Guyanese society . Sadly he was assinated by the PNC he memories and ideals still bis there. This sitting government, with its savage and brutal raping and looting of our natural resources with corruption In Every sphere of big and small businesses. International businesses are running to Guyana also as they have a free pass by the government to plunder and reap our wealth. With kick backs and commissions.being paid to government officials for smooth signing of contracts . Nobody knows where this roller coaster is going crash. As we say live in hope and die in despair, nothing lasts forever. We all die sooner than later, and governments goes and COMES

Comments are closed.

Latest News