No concessions on unity when criminals executing a political programme
-Ramotar
The PPP cannot give in to demands for political unity in an atmosphere in which it is widely believed that criminals are executing a political programme, PPP General Secretary Donald Ramotar said.
He also said that the issue of a presidential candidate will not be decided in the press.
President Jagdeo, General Secretary Donald Ramotar, former President Janet Jagan and Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee observe a minute’s silence in memory of slain Agriculture Minister Satyadeow Sawh at the PPP congress yesterday. (Photo by Jules Gibson)
Delivering the Central Committee Report of the People’s Progressive Party at its two day 29th Congress at the Diamond Secondary School, East Bank Demerara yesterday, Ramotar said that “one of the main obstacles that we face in Guyana, which has a big impact on our politics, is the crime situation.”
The Central Committee Report was one of yesterday’s agenda items which followed the opening of the conference attended by over 1,500 local and overseas delegates and observers.
The opening ceremony featured an address by President Bharrat Jagdeo, and brief remarks by PPP Founder Member and former President, Mrs Janet Jagan, as well as by Ramotar.
Also on the agenda was the election of 35 members to the Central Committee of the party and five candidate members. Even as the opening ceremony was taking place in the auditorium of the school to which journalists except for photographers were not given access, a few persons were busy canvassing support for a number of persons they felt should be on the committee. These included Ralph Ramkarran, Moses Nagamootoo, Kwame McCoy, Clinton Collymore and Vanburn Brown.
In presenting the report on behalf of the Central Committee, Ramotar alluded to the negative effects the narco-trade had had on countries like Guyana, but said that another dimension to criminal enterprises which should concern the party, was the linkage of politics and crime.
PPP members enjoy their refreshment during the lunch break of the 29th People’s Progressive Party Congress held at the Diamond Secondary School, East Bank Demerara yesterday. The congress concludes today. (Photo by Jules Gibson)
While the PPP had often been criticized for making this connection, he continued, now many were saying that the brutal murders at Lusignan, Bartica and Lindo Creek had a political linkage, and a few had even suggested negotiations with the criminals. The change in the commentators’ approach, he posited, was due to the fact that the victims in the latest blood-letting were persons of very modest means, and robbery could not have been the motive.
The intention had clearly been to create fear and to terrorise the population in general, but more particularly the Indo-Guyanese population. The idea he told the congress, could have also been to bait the Indo-Guyanese into some form of tit-for-tat and unleash full-scale “racial reactions” reminiscent of the 1960s. “This is a prospect we had to avoid,” he said.
He said that the criminals and their “intellectual authors” were becoming desperate having seen their attempts to instigate hostility to the government encountering a weak response and that the race hate they propagated was losing its appeal. Evidence of that, he went on, could be seen in the failure to mobilise people to protest against the government on several issues.
Security crisis
Tracing the history of the opposition forces to create a security crisis, and the strategy to make the country ungovernable since 1997, Ramotar said that having failed to get the police not to respond to the lawlessness, the PNC began to target the police more aggressively speaking about extra-judicial killings and later the murder of young black men whenever bandits or criminals “were confronted by the police and were killed.”
Ramotar then went on to claim that the media “that were influenced by the PNCR” worked hard to demonise the Target Special Squad which had been trained to deal with “dangerous elements,” while at the same time PNC propaganda, “was geared to link the government to narco-criminals” with a view first to trying to turn the police against the administration then to get the international community against it.
The General Secretary said the situation was further complicated by the PNCR’s inner party struggle in which elements in alliance with radical Black nationalists outside the party seemed determined to destabilise the regime and foster political instability. “The crime situation,” he told his audience, “is now being used as an instrument to achieve their political goals.
Continuing in this vein, he said, “the mainstream PNC does not feel confident that it can buck the extremists. They allowed the monster to get out of control. That is why they are now appeasing the criminals. So while the PNC expresses regret at the brutal killings they are never categorical in their condemnation.”
Stating also that inevitably they blame the security forces, he said that when the back lands of Buxton was being cleared to remove the hiding places for criminals, it became an issue in which the security forces were accused of excesses. “Clearly, (PNCR Leader Robert) Corbin is making concessions to this group to protect his leadership. This is a reflection of the strength of the criminals,” he said.
Stating that the AFC’s position approximates with that of the PNCR, the Central Committee report said that this was not surprising since AFC Leader Raphael Trotman had been one of the early PNCR leaders to visit Buxton during the period when the five prison escapees in 2002 were hiding there.
He said that “Now that it is widely believed that the criminals are also executing a political programme it is legitimate to ask who are the beneficiaries of such an action.” He asked rhetorically whether those who were calling for a political solution were implying that it was the PNC which would be gaining from this, and if so “then it is surely not a good condition for political unity,” adding, “We cannot give into such demands in this type of atmosphere.”
To deal with the issue of crime, the report said that there was urgent need to establish a squad similar to the defunct “Tactical Service Unit” (Target Special Squad) since the use of the army was temporary and there was need for a permanent crack unit with specialized training and adequate equipment to counter criminal enterprises.
Apart from the parliamentary opposition parties attacking the government, the report said that there was a continuous barrage on a daily basis from certain media houses.
“Leading the pack at this time is, without, doubt, the ‘Stabroek News’ the supposedly ‘independent’ media,” followed by the ‘Kaieteur News.’ The Stabroek News’ editorial and letter columns, said the General Secretary, existed mainly to criticize the government “trying to make a case of incompetence; corruption and poor governance.” The Kaieteur News was described as a “hodge-podge of views with a few favourable expressions to government but balanced off by some vicious attacks not only on the administration, but also the Party and even our history.” Some TV station also “throw in their lot” opposing the government.
The report went on to say that the media had grown under the PPP government, but “rights and responsibilities must go together.”
Commenting on the political situation in the country, Ramotar reported that following the 2006 elections, the PPP/C had a parliamentary representative in every region, the only party in the country to achieve this.
Of significance, he said, was the fact that the PPP was breaking down the racial barriers first erected by the colonial masters and which was subsequently used by the PNC and other forces opposed to the PPP.
The achievement, he said, was rooted in policies the government has pursued consistently – conducting business without discrimination , without fear or favour, and ensuring governance in the interest of the people in spite of charges of discrimination from the opposition and nothing specific being brought forward.
Since 1992, he noted that the party had enjoyed support from all segments of society and since the 2006 elections, the major opposition PNCR was left “weaker than before.”
He continued, “The problems and divisions which the PNCR is experiencing may be more deep-seated than what readily meets the eye. They cannot be seen as stemming from mere personality clashes. There are obviously serious undercurrents at play to which the substantial loss of electoral support attest. Time will tell if that party will overcome their difficulties or they will be aggravated.”
Raphael Trotman’s split from the PNCR did not solve the leadership problem within that party, said Ramotar, and the issue still remained open as seen with the challenge and defeat of Vincent Alexander’s group to oust PNCR Leader Robert Corbin as leader of the party in July 2007.
Noting that the WPA was no longer in parliament, he said that the party’s leaders seemed to have withdrawn from politics and those driven by Black nationalism had found accommodation with the PNCR and seemed to be satisfied with writing letters to the newspapers making wild and unsupported claims of racial discrimination.
ROAR, he said appeared to have been “effectively dissolved” while GAP too had “almost disappeared”; it now appeared “as though Paul Hardy (GAP’s Leader) is moving closer to the AFC for political survival.”
The AFC’s approach in appealing to the two main racial groups in the country in defeating the PPP and the PNC, Ramotar said, was doomed to failure and adverted to earlier failed attempts along the same lines.
Acknowledging, however, that the AFC had made some gains, mainly in the PNC’s traditional stronghold, Ramotar said that it may be true that many PNCR supporters were fed up with the violence that the party so often used as a political tool and many had gone to the PPP while others “who are still in transition, have stopped at the AFC.”
Having failed to hold the balance of power between the PPP and the PNCR, he said that with hard work the PPP could attract many who had supported the AFC into its ranks.
Regions
Having TUF in Cabinet and supporting government’s policies had allowed “us to take the positions of Chair-man and Vice Chairman of Region Nine (Upper Essequibo/Upper Takutu).” But he noted that the PPP must work to win the majority in the hinterland regions at the 2011 elections, although with the work of the government in the interior the party had confidence that it would continue to make gains politically in Amerindian communities.
According to Ramotar consensus building and alliances were the main planks of the party’s political work and the PPP/C administration had been consulting civil society stakeholders as well as improving conditions in parliament making parliament “a truly deliberative body.” The creation of parliamentary committees and the tabling of the Auditor General’s report to parliament, he said all showed that Guyana was one of the leading democracies in the world.
The report said that the gains of the party was as a direct result of the consistency of the party in the fight for unity rooted in scientific analysis over the years. The PPP/Civic alliance has been most successful and was rated as the most successful and enduring of all alliances made.
Former president and founder leader of the party Dr Cheddi Jagan was credited for this.
The report cited Dr Jagan as saying at the 25th Congress held in George-town in 1994 that the alliance provided for racial/ ethnic and class balance and ideological pluralism in a national democratic state. He predicted that “…in time with the PPP/Civic government’s commitment to an attainment of further economic growth and human development, fears of racial/ethnic insecurity will disappear and the ground will be prepared not only for national unity but also for racial/ethnic and working class unity…”
In consolidating and advancing unity and solidarity of the people, the report said that the PPP/C remained the most important vehicle in this cause.
Ramotar said that the PPP/C victory at the elections was also due to the fact that the government had performed magnificently. “Our President, Cde Bharrat Jagdeo, has grown in stature both nationally and internationally,” he reported.
On the issue of a presidential candidate for the 2011 general elections, Ramotar noted that there had been much talk in the public as to who it would be.
“Much speculation is going on in the press and all kinds of scenarios are being created. We have even seen talk about front runners etc. in the press,” he said adding that he sometimes got the impression that a lot of what was appearing was designed to create confusion, mischief and probably division in the ranks.
He said the discussions would go on in the public by both friends and foes of the party and this was only natural because it was a very important issue. This is President Jagdeo’s last term in office and in his remarks at the opening session of the conference, he said it would be his last time addressing the party at its highest forum as President unless another such congress was held before the next general elections.
On the issue of the candidate, Ramotar, who has expressed an interest in running for the presidency, said, “let me make it clear that the decision will not be made in the press. It will not be made prematurely to satisfy any speculation.
“The party will discuss this issue and it is the party that will choose the time, the place and the method of deciding this matter.” He added, “We are fortunate that our party has talent and we have many comrades that are capable of taking on such responsibilities.”
Let us understand clearly; the PPP congress is a gathering of rhetorical speakers and Rhetorical Political speakers at that; since there is not going to be the anointing of next “president”, these distracting speeches will be like the air in rolling truck tube on a hot day.
The solution = take distracting speeches, make into a hard ball, aim and toss; get your slam dunk. (remember folks if you ‘miss’ it’s called littering and that’s a nono)
A fair and common-sense address (some may even say presidential!) from PPP General Secretary Donald Ramotar
what is common sense about what ramotar said ? and you saying some may even say presidential ! you are the only one saying so and thats because you might be deficient in the world of politics.
SATISH PLEASE NONE OF THESE COMMUNISTS LOOK ANYTHING PRESIDENTIAL
The PPP and ramotar continue to pour out these wild thoughts without any factual support and expect the guyanese nation to believe it. Satish is apparently from some other planet. what is presidential about what ramotar said. You satish might have been out of the loop for too long and for that i will excuse you
RAISINGHELL YOU ARE SURE DOING THAT LOL
As I know it the General Secretary of the PPP supposed to report on the activities of the Party and propose plan instead he use every opportunity to attack all the Opposition Leaders, Stabroek and Kaieture news.
According to this article Mr Ramotar admitted that their is problem concerning the crime situation in Guyana which has created a big impact on the PPP politics. This Government has fail the people of Guyana with the crime situation and try to put the blame on every one else but this Government who has fail the people. For example a Stake Holder meeting was held by no other than the President himself – what came out of that stake holders meeting? (To date nothing). That meeting was held to show the public that the Government doing something. (but noting). What happened to the torture report (noting).
Mr Romotar accused the PNCR Leader of defended the criminal and the AFC leader visited Buxton – Those people are Political Leaders and they have to be there for the people and all the people regardless of race colour or creed. ( those opposition leaders was at Lusanan and Bartica.
I do hope that Paul Hardy (GAP’s Leader) Raphael Trotman (AFC’s Leader ) and PNCR Leader Robert Corbin and the people of Guyana note the statement made by Mr Romatar – “He noted that the PPP must work to win the majority in the hinterland regions at the 2011 elections, although with the work of the government in the interior the party had confidence that it would continue to make gains politically in Amerindian communities”. As I recall at the last General election held in 2006 the PPP supporters flood these areas with food the day before election what a cheep way to win an election.
There is an old say you can fool some of the people some of the time but not all the time. Time will tell.
WELL SAID WELL SAID BIRDS DONT LET THESE NEGATIVE PEOPLE LIKE BUCK STOP U FROM WRITING THE TRUTH IT HURT THEM EVERY TIME
Look stop slagging our president off … that man has done lots for guyana ….more in 5 years than that bully burnham ever imagined so … lets at least give his his praises i hope the ppp wins the next election which i have no doubt in my mind they will … so lets support the ppp all the way ….guyana is a much better place now so lets be happy at least there is food in the shops to buy and medication in the hospitals which the ppp built and children can have books in their schools long live the ppp…mr jagdeo is a godsend
yes, he is a godsend, he has done alot, but i think that interms of crime there should be higher penalty, hang all those murderers… theft should be considered a more serious crrime and jail time should increase. also i think that some system shoud be inplace to prevent the police from taking bribe.
If Guyana is so good now why don’t you go back and live. And when will you people stop playing the blame game. L.F.S Burnham is dead and gone.
buckgaluk – you have to thank god night and day for not being in Guyana because the same man Jagdeo that you are praising if you were living in Guyana you will say what you have said. The his try of Burnham speaks for its self – you cannot erase history. Although their is food the people cannot afford to buy it, the VAT killing the people slowly. Kids going to school hungry. As for the school – Guyana has more literacy program now in that Country that will go down in history for this PPP Government that you are singing praise for. If Jagdeo is a godsend why more people leaving Guyana instead of return home. The people of Guyana can now see what a deference between the Burnham Government and the Jagdeo Government.
Burnnham was a Bully as any other Head Of State including both the incumbent President of Guyana and the President of the Worlds Most Powerful Nation.
I must admit that Jadeo has done some economically sensible things but who has been the Befeficiary examine and analyze objectively the Socio and Enconomic factors prior to his emergence to the Presidency and present.
More importantly one needs to remember that it was the PNC under Hoyte who intoduced the Mixed Economy concept and business policies, the infrastructure of which the PPP after comming to power tried to change back to the old and now defunct Communist/Socialist Party Control policies. Yes I give Jadeo credit for continuing the Mixed Economy development strategy and wich now appears to have evolved into 75 % Free Economy through Privatization and Overseas Investment opportunities.
However the DUDE is a BULLY ask Janet, Moses and even the want to be Presidential Candidate Ramotar and the Stabroek News the only paper in Guyana that reports the facts and does not align its self to any Political Party.
What hogwash! For starters, if they are paid liveable wages; it would make the police less accessible to bribes and more incline to fight crime! Buckgaluk and June are both out of touch with reality.
When a person is enjoying live there is a saying: that you have life in
“LONDON” from what I’m reading it seems very much as if you are
enjoying life in London Myfun.
You are So much out of touch with your mother land.
you are so correct. WE need to support the PPP in making the country a much better place to live so we can all go back AND STAY one day. Guyana is a much better country now than in the Burnham error. Lets support the PPP and President Jagdeo.
Since the PPP has Guyana on the right track why don’t all of you return?? Instead of staying in a foreign country and in most cases YES!! most cases having to do two jobs to make ends meet. Burnham was indeed not the best but his successor the Best Guyana President ever Desmond Hoyte made a tremendous mark during his tenure that even the former Finance Ministe Asgar Ally commended praised and followed the same programme, look even last week in commenting on the death of Dr. King it was noted that the PPPadministration used his ideas in their economic recovery programme.So instead of praising an administration that has brought SHAME on Guyanese be honest in Burnham’s era has any one of his Ministers been stripped of their USA, Canadian or British Visas NO!! Never Jagdeo Ministers were how embarrassing so Mackdog and others be sure that your Brains are engaged before putting your tounges into motion.
……. finally ! the upper echelon,, of the PPP,, has their finger on the pulse of the politically motivated upsurge in cimes of unspeakable acts by those who have been misled by the “intellectual/s”,, or by those whose ability to “reason” was lost on the focus to use violence,, mayhem and,, murder to achieve their desire to
“reign regal” once again ,, let it be known to those whose intention it is to pursue this front ,, to achieve control of the nat’l purse AGAIN ! the donor communities ,, and de world at large watching those in GY ,, and just so — y’all know who u r — y’all know ,, the law in the countries where u now reside ,, they are paying very close attention ,, to all that is said since 9/11,,,, but here is my advice y’all don’t let up ,, cos we want to know where u r !,,
BGSBNY NOTHING SAID HERE IS IN ANYWAY ANTI-AMERICAN SO STOP THE NONSENSE MAN GET A LIFE GO TO CHURCH AND PRAISE THE LORD, WE ARE HAVING A HONEST BLOG HERE , THIS IS THE U S OF A MR.BUGSBUNNY
bgbsbny,
i agree with you, i will name them for you…THE PNC.
These are certainly important points in a big picture that we have clearly forgotten. If all these factors were carefully devised to work to the detriment of the PPP, one wonders by what strength they did not fall apart. The PPP I am certain, must be in possession of a wealth of information with regards to the methods used by the opposition in using the ‘fear factor’ to instill views in the general public. But there must be reasons prohibiting them to effectively act other than the one that they ‘bemoan’, that is, the Indo-Guyanese are being goaded to retaliate into a scenario not unlike the 1960’s. They give the impression of patting themselves in the back for avoiding ever such situation. One wonders why the PPP seems to have their hands tied behind their back. It’s almost as if each party is holding an ace and can hold each other at ransom at any point in time. If the public needs to know what’s going on they should not deny what’s clearly written on the wall. Review each year’s events and the moves of all players to be able see the big picture falls into place. Mainstream is a no-no.
Total agreement with you. I would really like to see or hear the connection between the PNC and the current crime wave.
Just read parts of this article and it seemed to me more of an analysis of what the Opposition parties are not doing or doing.
You know it’s a shame because I thought that Ramoutar was one of the saner heads and least racially-inclined in the PPP Exec.
And could someone tell me what is the real objective of a political party General Secretary’s report?
it is called national healing.
Is this a PPP Congress or an election campaign roadside meeting?
Will the PPP ever begin to act like a Government??
Everything is everybody’s elses fault. These people have been in Governmebt for over 16 years and still would not accept responsibility for anything. It is still blaming everything on 28 years of PNC mismanagement while trying to rewrite the country’s history.
If there is to be a measure of “progress” under the PPP administration then I suggest comparing the gains (achievements)to the losses (retrogressions). It may prove to be very interesting….. and I don’t want to hear from ‘visitors’ (those who were able to migrate to ‘greener pastures’) how Guyana ‘nice’ I’d rather the comments of “who feels it knows it’ those who are in Guyana for whatever the reason and have to live under the conditions dictated by the Government.
well said ankoko let us wait n see who will answer you from guyana if they have a pc or maybe its black out time in guyana
Well said ankoko I’m not in guyana but i must let you know that
i am feeling it, why because i have to visit MoneyGram and
WesternUnion every two weeks.
I didn’t hear any apologies from the PPP for not SERVING the Guyanese people. Do these folks understand the concept of PUBLIC SERVICE…They were elected to SERVE the people and all of the people that is.
Everything I hear from these PPP comrades, at this congress, is about accusing, pointing fingers and blaming everybody else for their failures. They are even blaming the local media like if the media are the ones who swear to Protect and Serve. If this is what free and fair elections means then I think most honest Guyanese would say bring back the old stuff at least we were safer from massacre and crime.
Mr General Secretary your party needs to apologize to the Guyanese people for not solving the crime problem in a timely fashion. Every single death at the hands of the criminals is the PPP government’s responsibility for securing justice. So where is the justice and the peace you swore to uphold?
All of the known criminals are still at large and the few that were in prison already are now running free like a bird to do more damage. Please no more promises to do better…..even your own kids are saying enough already.
bullocks….to anyone who compares jagdeo slightly to burnham… people leave guyana cos after working for years under the currupted regime of the pnc …and actually achieving something wake up to find low life criminals with guns shooting them and their families to take what is not theirs…from the very people who have got the money to creat jobs for them … i agree death penalty to all of them who rob with guns aquired from the pnc era…better yet let them plant some farm to feed their less fortunate brothers …say what u like u all in denial …and dont worry … all those police who take bribe is on their waay out for good thanks to the ppp again i say … long live the ppp
jagdeo is not as half an intellect as burnham so that wrong comparison
burnham was a autocratic leader but look at jagdeo who should be leading a democratic society.
as for crime jagdeo preside over worst crime sitaution in guyana history.
the curruption the pnc did in 28 year as been overtaken in 10 years
jagdeo will be remember ed as the president that keep watch when murder and drugs trafficking put guyana on the map again.