The media lockout from the Guyana Defence Force conference on Thursday is a clear indication of the growing dictatorship in the current administration, the PNCR has said.
Members of the party were asked to give their view on the issue at its weekly press briefing on Friday and executive member Aubrey Norton said it was “clear that the government is moving towards dictatorship and is not interested in a truly democratic society.”
He said while he understood that there were certain issues which the army would deem sensitive and would prefer no coverage on these by the media it was traditional that the press was allowed to cover the President’s address and the formal opening session.
Media operatives turned up to cover the opening of the conference in response to advisories received from both the army and the Office of the President.
However, minutes before Commander-in-Chief President Bharrat Jagdeo arrived, an officer who identified himself as Major Daniels advised reporters that they could only take pictures of the President posing with his officers and then would have to leave. (See other story on page 12.)
