Was Guyana ever great? It is evident that we have been working on our plot to achieving greatness. Sane and innovative we are, but also mentally unstable and adverse to change. Our potential cannot be measured, but where we are today reveals that our methods thus far have been greatly flawed and failed in many instances.
Was it ever great? Millennials (Generation Y) and Generation Z might especially ask that question. Those who grew up hearing about the Burnham days and about flour being banned; about lines for food and fuel, but also, about Guyana being the breadbasket of the Caribbean and how the man was a genius ahead of his time.
And perhaps even the generations before, Generation X and the Baby Boomers, who were there to see Guyana become independent and a republic, may also ask the question. Grandparents, old aunts and uncles used to talk about the ‘good ole days’. When pennies and dimes had value in Guyana and food was so cheap like it was almost free. They talked about the 50s, 60s, 70s and even 80s when one’s income could have been less than a hundred dollars a month and these folks were able to purchase homes, feed and adequately clothe themselves and their children, find time for leisure and still had money to save. But inflation happens and now even a minimum wage of $70,000 is inadequate.
