Dear Editor,
January 1, 2026, will mark the 76th anniversary of the founding of the PPP.
Nowadays, little is told about why the party was established, who were its founders and from whence they came. Moreover, very few know that the PPP was removed from office twice by a combination of local and overseas operatives, that it fought against rigged elections at great cost involving loss of lives and tremendous sacrifice by many for many years up to 1992, then it lost power by an aberration in 2015.
For many years, the PPP was blocked from winning elections because, according to one Caribbean leader at that time, “It is better to have rigged elections in Guyana than to have no elections at all.” Apart from the ideological innuendo that there would be no elections with a ‘communist PPP’ in power, there was a belief held by some that the PPP could never win elections so long as it did not bend to the PNC dictatorship and to America.
Throughout its long torturous life, like the ‘Old Rugged Cross’ while party, leaders and activists were shunned and branded to be what they were not owing to outdated convictions held by some who held on to language of the cold-war era and who, Iike ostriches with heads buried in the sand, refused to recognize that the PPP’s members and supporters remained solid and unmoved by shibboleths.
The PPP was branded an ‘Indian party’ for which there was no place in it for African Guyanese. But this has changed dramatically. Nevertheless, the attacks continue, but are so transparent and grotesque and in some cases muted and sophisticated, one is left to wonder whose side the framers are on.
76 years after, the PPP continues to weather the storm, winning election after election. Few people would understand why it was necessary during the 1950-1992 period to be a good disciplined member of the PPP, who was expected to be honest and fair in all their dealings with the party, with their comrades and in their own personal life. And not to use the Party for any personal advantage and nor to expect any personal rewards.
It was about encouraging criticism and self-criticism; adhering to the party’s code of conduct; about values, character, creative application of theory and practice, and above all, intellectual and spiritual uplifting from reading books on sale at the Michael Forde Bookshop or the Progressive Library, as well as by listening to lectures and speeches by outstanding party leaders and guest lecturers either at the auditorium of Freedom House, sitting in the gallery of the National Assembly or at public or bottom-house meetings.
In that particular period, and naturally, because the party was not in government, it was not about bidding for contracts; seeking out perks; nor soliciting invitations to be on the cocktail circuit; finally, it was not about “yes Comrade leader and “no Comrade leader” as it was with the PNC. For the PPP, it was about hours, sometimes days of complex and in some cases, delicate discussions on matters of policy and of national interest.
Many who have passed though the ‘university of the PPP’ have learnt to oppose war, be it racial, tribal or religious; that national and working class unity and peace, at home or abroad is to be nurtured and treasured; that human development, be it social, cultural, economic and environmental is to be supported in whatever shape or form so long it is people- centred.
‘The university of the PPP’ birthed many who would have studied abroad and returned home as qualified professionals; the party afforded the opportunity to many to develop the cultural, religious and intellectual attributes of others. Through its solidarity with friends and comrades abroad, members were exposed to the way of life of the peoples in foreign countries; provided medical attention free of cost and recreational opportunities to those in need.
Seventy-six years later, many of the programmatic features and characteristics that distinguish the PPP from others in or out of government, remain intact especially in the social sector where great advances have been made. And as we reminisce about the past 76 years of the PPP’s stewardship as an opposition and ruling party, we should keep in mind, Victor Hugo, the French romantic writer and politician who wrote; ‘Change your opinions, keep your principles, change your leaves, keep intact your roots’