Dear Editor,
Like the majority of Guyanese, I am not surprised by the sudden resurgence of some of the usual paper civil society organisations, which were missing in action between 2015 and 2020, and the emergence of several others, which are either surrogates of these very ‘paper organisations’ or set up by individuals with political axes to grind with the People’s Progressive Party/Civic Government. These so-called ‘civil society organisations’, whose leadership and membership appear to be classified information, are out in full force, launching the usual unfounded attacks on the PPP/C Government.
The reason for these attacks is simple — they are upset. They are simply upset that the President Irfaan Ali-led administration is developing Guyana at a pace never seen before. They are upset, because their political handlers, while in the seat of government, lacked this kind of vision, as demonstrated by the PPP/C Administration — a vision that has already catapulted Guyana into unprecedented levels of national development. This tsunami of development seems to be driving the naysayers crazy.
The vision of this government is hard to question; therefore, these political surrogates of the opposition are left with only one option, that is, to manufacture controversies and try to create doubt over the government’s developmental agenda. Fortunately, the people of Guyana know differently and are embracing the programmes, policies and initiatives of the PPP/C Government.
Guyanese are focused on the multiplicity of opportunities that are created by the government; for example, owning a home, developing academically through the GOAL scholarship programme, job creation, business opportunities, the development of the country’s infrastructure, opportunities in the agriculture sector and financial support received from the government, just to name a few.
However, the sad reality is that we have people who claim to have the interests of Guyanese at heart shouting from the rooftops trying to stymie the development of this country intended to benefit its citizens, and when we experienced some of the gravest transgressions against this nation, these very so-called ‘civil society organisations’ were in convenient hibernation.
Where were organisations like Red Thread, the Guyana Human Rights Association, Transparency International, and the rest of the gang when the previous administration signed away our oil wealth via a lopsided contract? Or when APNU-AFC hid the US$18M signing bonus? Where were these so-called organisations when State lands were being distributed to cronies of the then administration? Where were these ‘organisations’ for five years when our economy was stagnant and the nation was slipping into extreme poverty while the APNU+AFC leaders, their friends and family were enjoying the good life? Why were these ‘organisations’ silent when the APNU+AFC trampled on our Constitution and refused to hold general and regional elections within the constitutionally mandated three months after the passage of a no-confidence motion on December 21, 2018? Why were these ‘civil society organisations’ silent when Guyanese and the rest of the world saw the most blatant attempt to steal the 2020 elections by the APNU+AFC? Where were these ‘organisations’ when, for five months, the APNU+AFC was clinging to power and attempted to foist themselves onto the Guyanese people as the government, despite losing the March 2020 elections?
The simple reality is that the President, Dr Irfaan Ali-led administration continues to fulfill its commitment to the Guyanese people of being transparent and accountable. The President himself has been engaging the local, regional and international press on a regular basis, answering questions about every single area of his government. He has never dodged a question. The same could be said for Vice-President, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo; Prime Minister, Brigadier, Mark Phillips and every other member of the Cabinet.
Yours sincerely,
Edward Layne
