Dear Editor,
It is quite comical and sad to see how pathetic the PNC and their cohorts have become. Lust for power and relevance have left them clinging at straws. Instead of doing the honourable thing and relinquishing the positions of the commissioners of GECOM that do not pertain to them, they have begun their squatting process again as they did after Comrade Granger’s administration lost the no confidence vote.
Unfortunately, the lust for power and greed on display by the party of Comrade Burnham is shared by several members on both sides of the soon to be dishonourable house of parliament. The party of Comrade Jagan is also not without fault. If it isn’t 5% of the top of every major contract, it is an unannounced signing bonus or a one-sided contract that is too lucrative for those involved to relook at and modify.
This height of ludicrousness can only be surpassed by the continual building on sand that washes away easily in a flood zone where prevention is a passing thought and not an urgent action to be taken. The founders of our nation who stood together before the folly of greed for power divided them would be ashamed to see the path that our nation is on. A path that is now filled with waste, corruption, pollution, and moral decay. This is not the future we the people of our great nation seek.
My fellow Guyanese, comrades, our appointed leaders have betrayed their oath of office and instead have created a culture where haste for wealth has become more important than the lives of our people. Our citizens die due to this culture of haste for wealth which is displayed daily on our roads. Our citizens lose their hard-earned belongings due to the greed that has caused neglect for that which matters, and that has increased focus on that which can be used as a vehicle for theft and wasteful exuberance for unneeded excess. How many more fires must occur and how many more must become homeless? The government knows the correct way to prevent fires and improve fire safety, but they have chosen to ignore national tragedy and focus on haste where it is not needed. Our schools remain at risk, and our children do not get the benefit of a safe environment despite the numerous calls for the government to make safety the top priority.
We can no longer afford leaders who save in Switzerland while Guyanese are on the bread line. We can no longer afford leaders who party with dignitaries while teachers are on the picket line. The betrayal of our future must cease and the remaking of a culture where we the Guyanese people are treated as equals regardless of position and influence must begin.
How can leaders that embrace those that take advantage of children, that carry out abuse, that steal from the poor, that sell drugs, launder their ill-gotten gain, and leave the vulnerable behind be in whom we place our trust?
Comrades, fellow Guyanese, we have been through colonialism, dictatorship, violent rule, division caused by racial hatred and poverty caused by theft. Will we let it continue? Will we let them steal our daily bread and sell our family’s future? We are a free people. No man nor woman in the name of transformation, progress or financial upliftment should be allowed to do as he or she wants. No person in a position of power or leadership should be allowed to let illicit drugs and gangs take over our schools, neighbourhoods, and businesses. The folly of insatiable greed has led our country to a new low in morality, and only by the will of we the people of our great nation shall we overcome the ills that our corrupt leaders have caused to take root.
Be strong comrades, be strong my fellow Guyanese, we have it within us to be that great nation our ancestors dreamt of and fought for. We have it within us to set our own path. A path that doesn’t follow the folly of the greedy. A path that lifts all of our people out of poverty is within our reach. No longer must we allow those who are fat from the theft of our nation con us and fool us into being satisfied with less than our fair share. A livable wage is not asking too much. Payment on time for our work completed is not asking too much. We must rid ourselves of those who wish to rule over us as slave masters and overseers did in the time of some of our ancestors. We must embrace self-determination and self-respect. No wicked man nor wicked woman is greater than the will of the people. The future is ours to shape. We must take hold of it and ensure that those we select to lead remain focused on honest dealings and the service to our nation and all of our people.