Dear Editor,
Patriotic Guyanese would agree that our country’s future is more important than petty partisan politics. The need to forge a common identity renders personal ambitions insignificant, and abandoning the divisive politics of the past, requires courageous and often, daring leadership. The AFC’s decision, therefore, to participate in the recent pro-democracy rally at the Square of the Revolution, should be welcomed and acknowledged for what it is: a brave step towards a better future through the rejection of dictatorship by a united opposition.
Editor, I was one of the thousands of Guyanese who stood at the site of Guyana’s best known symbol of the struggle for liberation. I witnessed AFC and APNU supporters cheering, as speakers called for the restoration of parliamentary democracy, the peaceful removal of a dictatorial regime, the empowerment of ordinary Guyanese, and significantly, constitutional reform. Notably, there was a sense of common purpose, and one would have been hard put to distinguish the APNU supporters from their AFC counterparts.
Editor, citizens who want change must seize every opportunity to close the divisions that keep us mired in the past; this is particularly applicable to those who view themselves as leaders. In fact, Guyanese may wish to consider this a litmus test for leadership: if a person preaches and practises the politics of inclusion, he or she is fit for leadership. Otherwise, we can find another captain to steer the ship.
As an APNU organised rally, there were understandably a greater number of APNU presenters and probably, supporters. I trust though, that future demonstrations of patriotic and democratic commitment, include a wider range of Guyanese of all political and ethnic persuasions. To this end, it may be necessary for ordinary citizens to impress upon their leaders the need to get with the programme. After all, everyone wants a better future, and if any leader fails to pass the litmus test, we can choose someone who can, and move on.
Yours faithfully,
Mark DaCosta
