Not unsurprisingly, the US is held up as a model for democracy and democratic practices here in Guyana. As the first colony in the Western Hemisphere to break free from the shackles of colonialism to chart a course for the improvement of the lives of its own citizens, she leads where we have to follow, in so many ways. The US focus on political democracy had been trenchantly criticised during the last century for its supposed neglect of economic democracy, but the alternatives offered by the critics have not fared…
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The SOCU Saga
With calls for an official inquiry into the tragic denouement to the high-speed chase on behalf of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) that ended in the death of three persons showing no signs of a let-up, the administration cannot continue with their stonewalling. The Guyana Police Force, of which SOCU is a unit, cannot bear the sole responsibility of investigating itself. There is firstly the matter of the remit of SOCU, and why was it deployed on a NICIL investigation. In mid-November 2013 at the announcement of Cabinet’s formation…
Read MoreThe rum-drinking culture
It wouldn’t take long for anyone to conclude after observing what is happening in the society, especially during the past holiday season, that the issue of alcohol consumption and the lasting negative effects it has on individuals and societies in general must be kept on the national agenda as it needs urgent attention. Not only can drinking too much alcohol cause negative short-term effects such as loss of judgment, loss of coordination, blurred vision, slurring of speech, and loss of balance etc, it can also cause negative long-term effects; these…
Read MoreEconomic development plan needed
It is now clear even to the most rabid supporter of the Guyana Government that it needs some help to craft an economic development programme that would lift us out of the slippery slope to recession on which we are careening. We repeat the advice proffered before – that the Government adopt without reservations the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) developed by its predecessor and yoke the 17 “Sustainable Development Goals” (SDGs) we signed on to last September. This, of course, would need strong State intervention. Even though the Washington…
Read MoreStill too many maternal deaths
In one of their latest reports on maternal mortality, two leading international bodies – the World Bank Group and the United Nations agencies – reported that maternal deaths have fallen by 44 per cent since 1990. This is quite encouraging news for Governments and international development partners who have been intimately involved in working towards reducing maternal deaths. However, the road ahead for many countries, including Guyana, is still a long one, as much more remains to be done in order to meet this specific Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target.…
Read MoreRoad carnage
Every year in November, Guyana observes Road Safety Month. This year, Guyana is observing the month under the theme, “Be wise, stay alive, stop speeding, don’t drink and drive”. Sadly this month began with four persons being killed within two days on the Corentyne Highway. Over the past week, 15 people have been injured in separate accidents which have been reported in the media. The first 11 persons were injured in an accident at Mahdia, followed by three others in Corentyne and a Policeman in Georgetown. This comes even as…
Read MoreRice as a political football
The news that the US rushed in to fill the shortfall in the rice imports of Venezuela occasioned by the latter’s interruption of shipments on the contract with our country must have come as a shock to many. However, this is simply an illustration on how the modern global trading system operates through a logic driven by countries weighing their economic interests and not reflexively reacting to political disputes. The contretemps with Venezuela began after the new Government grounded the Venezuelan air carrier Conviasa Airlines in June due to an…
Read MoreNew twist on border controversy
Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Greenidge has attempted to introduce a new element into the prevailing stand-off on the border controversy precipitated by Venezuela in 1962, which has had a chequered history. The Geneva Agreement (1966) mandated a “Mixed Commission” of Guyanese and Venezuelan representatives to resolve the controversy. They met between 1966 and 1970, but became embroiled in the fundamental disagreement that still prevails today. The Guyanese insisted the Venezuelans prove their contention of “nullity” of the 1899 Award, while the Venezuelans maintained it was the revision of the border…
Read MoreThe wages of Salarygate
The salary scandal precipitated by the Cabinet of the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government’s enormous salary hike for themselves reveals a strong streak of moral cynicism by the members of that Cabinet, who, if the Minister of Governance is to be believed, all participated in the decision to enrich themselves from the public treasury. And this action was done in direct contravention of their policy on salaries as stated in their Manifesto: Under the heading, “Industrial Relations and Labour Welfare”, the coalition criticised the People’s Progressive…
Read MoreRecalcitrant colonial mentality
The irony could not have been more pronounced when, announcing that his country would assist in constructing a prison for Jamaicans who had committed crimes in Britain and were to be deported to the island, British Prime Minister David Cameron bluntly informed a joint sitting of the Jamaican Parliament that his government rejected reparations for slavery. Caricom, as a group, has made a commitment to securing reparations for the crimes against humanity that constituted the pernicious institution of slavery. The Jamaicans being deported, were convicted of crimes in a society,…
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