Guyana’s highest award awaits?
Wait a minute! Not so fast!
For being the best batsman in the world, ahead of Ricky Ponting, Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid etc., all iconic figures, and every other batsman, irregardless of country of origin, in his infinite wisdom, President Bharat Jagdeo saw fit to award The Shiv with the lowly Golden Arrow of Achievement. This is # 3 on the totem pole and is restricted to 200 living Guyanese.
All Guyanese – Black, Brown, Portuguese, Mixed, Chinese, Amerindian should gently nudge the honourable President to rectify this egregious action by awarding The Shiv the # 1 Guyanese award – the Order of Excellence. At the moment the master batsman is Guyana’s best roving Ambassador.
Apparently the Guyana constitution, as amended, makes allowance for 25 Awards of Excellence (the top award) to be granted “to living Guyanese of distinction and eminence in the field of human endeavor of either national or international significance and importance”. Now I am not going to quibble as to who belongs there. Nor am I going to engage in revisionist history. But from the partial list I saw I could not tell who is/was # 1 in his/her profession. What I do know Chanderpaul is # 1. Not only in Guyana, not only in the West Indies, but in the entire world. Can anyone state with metaphysical certainty that Burnham, Ramphal, Rose, Chung, Reid, Shahabuddeen, Janet Jagan, Boysie Ramkarran, Chase were/are # 1?
President Jagdeo needs to rescind # 3 and institute #1. Pronto!
It’s a no-brainer, Mr. President. It’s of great consequence and patriotic pride and the right thing to do.
Shiv earned the distinction to be 1 of 25, not 1 of 200.
He did it the old-fashioned way…… he earned it.
It gets more complicated. The Shiv is not making it easier for the President. Last night in Dubai he won the cricketer of the year award.
C’mon Mr. President, be part of The Shiv’s truly historic year, not a hindrance.