Dear Editor,
In this election period, Mr. Jagdeo has made it his business to put himself right in the centre of the PPP campaign and like a magnet, drawing all of the politics in play to his calculated attack mode, which is really camouflage for the defence of his record as President of Guyana up to just three years ago.
Editor, the fact of the matter is that Mr. Jagdeo’s economic policies while President of Guyana were so flawed and lacking in vision, that one has to wonder how, with all the goodwill he received at the beginning of his tenure, he squandered it in creating a “golden pillow” for his retirement, instead of involving better business minds to correct his flaws and enhance the vision for a better Guyana.
Why would he build a stadium when proper drinking water, buses for our children to go to school, insufficient money for UG students, our top brains – are not a priority? Why would he build the Berbice bridge and not develop the Berbice economy with manufacturing investments, agricultural diversification investments with government subsidies and private sector incentives to bring Berbice into the mainstream of the Guyanese economy, instead of being “downstream” with no good jobs, hardly any investment and increasing migration out of Guyana as the solution for the people there? Why would he pursue the questionable Marriott enterprise, the Skeldon factory debacle, the Amaila Falls road fiasco when there was no real extensive foreign investment and trade to this country during his tenure? Is Mr. Jagdeo’s champion of the earth award a deserving one when, under his tenure, the Norway accords have been undermined by the techniques of our current Chinese logging companies?
– imagine, that under Jagdeo’s rule local wood products were (and are still) so high priced, we couldn’t afford wood houses anymore-most of the wood produced today is exported to the detriment of all of us. Imagine that when Bookers was here in Guyana, they cultivated sugar on approximately 100,000 acres of land, whereas Bai Shan Lin is controlling 2,370,000 acres of our lands!
-all Jagdeo’s policy-he started it all- the sellout of our national wealth- a new imperialism; President Cheddi would have been disgusted as he fought foreign domination and imperialism all his life.
Editor, Mr. Jagdeo’s economic policies continue under Mr. Ramotar – no manufacturing investments, no agricultural diversification, no real foreign investment and trade, no trimming of the top heavy bureaucracy
and the mind boggling red tape, no checks and balances as to how our tax
dollars are spent and no relief for our old and young citizens. I couldn’t believe it when I heard Mr. Jagdeo at a press conference at Freedom House where he stated that he put in 20 years in government service and he deserves the golden handshake he got when he left the presidency. Did it ever enter his mind that the paltry $12,000 he decided to give old age pensioners who served more time than him is so disgraceful, when one considers that Jagdeo gets over $3 million a month!
So, Editor, to mask his deficiencies, to draw fire away from his failed economic policies, to divert attention from questionable deals he put together when President, to steal the centre stage away from Mr. Ramotar with wild accusations and meaningless outbursts, to attack, attack and attack- is indeed like a boxer in a ring, a real bully of politics in Guyana.
Yours faithfully,
Cheddi (Joey) Jagan (Jr.)
