Mr Granger’s response was shocking

Dear Editor,
Mr David Granger was asked this question by a journalist (Mr Leonard Gildharie) a few weeks ago, and I quote: “But the scenario has changed somewhat from 2015? The AFC was there and they were able to grab some vital votes from Berbice and non-traditional PNC areas? However, since then things have changed. We had the closure of 4 sugar estates, with thousands of workers laid off, pre-dominantly Indo-Guyanese. Where are these votes going to come from?”

Mr Granger’s response was shocking. Mr Granger responded as follows, and I quote again: “The population of Guyana is not only confined to the sugar estates, but it is a wide population: in the hinterland community, in the urban areas, and in the rural areas.

“It is possible that many of the people who did not vote for us in 2015 will not vote for us again. But we had a margin, we got 207,000 votes, and I am very confident, because of our record over the last 4 years, we will increase our votes.

“People have gotten greater confidence in us, and it is not possible to judge the AFC or any single party on the performance they made a few years ago. Things have changed, our people have been on the ground, there have been outreaches, the people are seeing the benefits of the coalition Government, and I am confident that on the ground people are going to support the coalition parties.

“That is why it is important for us to conclude the negotiations with the AFC quickly, so that the people can see that we are still united going forward together.”

This discourse confirmed for me an attitude of mind that is a stranger to reality. Does Mr Granger have his head in the sand like the proverbial ostrich? Eccentricities like these that are being imposed on the nation have many similarities to a state of mind that harks back to the Sophia Declaration as unveiled by the PNC in 1976.

It was Mr Forbes Burnham who stated: “The Party should assume unapologetically its paramountcy over the Government, which is merely one of its executive arms”.

What I observed from Mr Granger’s statements during that interview was a common thread that the PNC has to be king; but if one observes most of the policy positions over the last 4 years and 4 months under Mr Granger, the PNC looks more like the King Lear of economic and political management: seethingly insane on many fronts, and then having the audacity to blame everyone but themselves for this mess.

These 2020 elections will be a cruel teacher to all those who cannot understand the fact that 69% of our people are under the age of 50 years. Those under-50-year-olds will, in their numbers, reject “paramountcy of any political party” over the State and the Constitution. All political players in the eyes of the 69% have a choice – follow the rule of law, or be permanently banished from mainstream politics.

P.S: That interview was weeks ago, and to date, the APNU and AFC have not concluded their negotiation. See what I mean – wholesale dupery.

Regards,
Sasenarine Singh