Excited that Nagamootoo has thrown hat into presidential ring

With respect to the story about Moses Nagamootoo’s readiness to serve as our party’s next presidential candidate in the general elections of 2011 (Sunday Stabroek, March 7), I am indeed excited about this latest development because it is my opinion that Mr Nagamootoo is the change that our party and our country needs. For too long this humble servant has stepped aside and let others take the reins of his beloved party. I believe that now is the time to act, now is the time for us to show faith in and support for this very brilliant son of the soil. Nagamootoo is a man of integrity; he is very honest and no one can question his loyalty to this potentially great land of ours. He is an erudite speaker, knowledgeable, experienced and as one Facebook fan puts it, “a mesmerizing leader.” I believe also that his humble beginnings, like those of Cheddi, Burnham, Gandhi, Martin Luther and Mandela, to name a few, are a great indication of his love and compassion for the working-class people of our country. And like those I have mentioned Moses Nagamootoo is a man for the people schooled by the great Cheddi Jagan.

It is very important that we examine the family values of anyone seeking to lead our nation, because these play a major role in decision-making. I believe that once a family person is elevated to the presidency of any nation, he/she leads with more compassion because he thinks more of the burdens on the ordinary people before critical decisions are made.

Mr Nagamootoo has done an excellent job in grooming his kids and the evidence is right before you, as his daughter is now a magistrate administering justice to our people. And as the saying goes, behind every good man there is a woman. I have known Mrs Nagamootoo for most of my life. She was my class teacher, my formmistress and later she became headmistress of the same school. She is a woman of great compassion, a mother-like figure to all at my former high school. I am excited about her taking that and all her other positive qualities to the national level. We need a visible first lady this time around in Guyana. We need a family that can inspire us to greatness. The Nagamootoos are just such a family. Guyana is slipping; moral values and standards are on the decline, A great sense of hopelessness has gripped our nation’s youth, and now is the time for us to arrest these ills. This is our time Guyana, this is the defining moment in our nation’s history. We can’t afford to wait any longer, for our children’s future is at stake. It is important that the person we put to lead us come 2011 takes our country out of the gutter, and brings back the respect we once had in the Caribbean and by extension, the rest of the world. For all these reasons I am pinning my hopes on Moses Nagamootoo to rescue us. He represents a complete turnaround within my party of choice, he is well liked by the grass-roots people of all races and well respected by international leaders, something our nation has been lacking for too long. Moreso, Mr Nagamootoo is well loved and respected in the diaspora, hence the creation of a Facebook fan page and group namely, ‘Moses Nagamootoo for President in 2011.’ Though this group is in its infancy, there has been a great deal of support coming from people mainly in the diaspora. I encourage all Guyanese to lend their support to this cause for our children are waiting on us to rescue them.

Yours faithfully,
Ossie Rogers