Dear Editor,
The four months suspension of NCN Channel Six by the President of Guyana, Mr. Bharrat Jagdeo, demonstrates the president’s lack of understanding of the basic sociological, and psychological impact Sharma’s programmes have had in contributing towards the stability of a largely depressed and demoralized Guyanese society.
While, politically, the move can be clearly described as an act consistent with a repressive and undemocratic regime, I believe that the social and psychological impact of the president’s action is equally important when examining this unfortunate decision by the Head of State.
Some of us may not profess to be “sold out fans” of Sharma’s Voice of the People’s programme, but that is beyond the point. What is important is that the programme is serving a basic social and psychological value to the ordinary Guyanese. So for the president and the government not to recognize these two basic functions of Sharma’s “Voice of the People”, again, demonstrates a clear disregard for the suffering of the people and/or the importance of a stable society. Or the president might not comprehend or appreciate how various social and psychological underpinnings contribute towards maintaining social order.
The programme from which Sharma’s suspension stemmed, “Voice of the People”, generally, served as a means for Guyanese to vent their frustrations. These frustrations are largely derived from the many social ills, dire economic constraints and dissatisfaction with the government and the overall political stagnation in the country. What is worse is that while the government’s NCN (GTV) has daily programmes, none of these programmes is designed to serve as a conduit or forum for taxpayers to vent their discontent or to relieve their stress. Instead, Sharma has provided for more than fifteen years that most basic opportunity, in this our fragile, emerging, or pseudo democracy (whatever it is branded) for citizens to relieve their frustration. The programme may be therapeutic in many ways, but it is unfortunate that our president does not or cannot see it this way. For him it might just be a programme that exposes the government, and bad mouths the president, supposedly dangerous crimes.
