HE serves this nation with such passion and resolve and humility that he’s not only become a household name and an icon of Government, but also a classic role model of what Public Service should look like.And despite Dr. Roger Luncheon’s diagnosed illness and his decades of work within Government, battling all manner of challenges and difficulties and setbacks and personal health issues, he never gave up, always finding the strength, resolve and stamina to show up for work.
Without Dr. Luncheon, our nation would be so much poorer.
Men like him and Clement Rohee and all the stalwarts who put their head down to serve the Guyanese people, selflessly giving of themselves in the rough and tumble of the political arena to the cause and vision of Dr. Cheddi Jagan for the Guyanese nation, we must applaud, making sure their story finds a secured place in the unfolding history of the Guyanese people.
Despite facing severe criticisms and misunderstandings, the Luncheons among us make us who we are as a 21st century nation. Dr. Luncheon seeks no self-glorification, or praise, or material gain from his work. He simply lives to contribute with his last energy to his nation.
In the 1990’s he threw his hat in the ring in the leadership race of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), seeking to serve as Head of State. It wasn’t to be. But he never walked away from Public Service, or Government. He stayed the course, put his head down, and worked hard, gaining the tremendous respect and admiration of Government members, and the wider society.
Today, Dr. Luncheon has become a living legend among us, with his loquacious style at press conferences making him a unique and endearing character on the Guyanese national stage.
He’s known as an astute academic, not a quintessential politician. And he’s accepted his role in Government with a profound sense of service, of giving back to his nation, of seeing new generations of our people benefit from a developing, thriving Guyana.
When leaders of lesser caliber quit the Government or Public Service because they face challenges, and embarked on crusades of negativity and demoralising of the Guyanese public space, Dr. Luncheon tackles the menial task of being secretary for the Cabinet and Head of the Presidential Secretariat, tasks that are foundational pillars for the smooth running of the State machinery.
These leaders among us, like President Donald Ramotar and Dr. Luncheon and the many humble servants of the State whose contributions we take for granted and hardly ever acknowledge or applaud, do the hard work behind the scenes to organise governance, in the face of continuing challenges as we work to repair our Governmental and Public Service systems that collapsed under the stifling weight of the 1964 -1992 dictatorship.
We want to see Guyana carve out a special place for leaders like Dr. Luncheon, and President Ramotar.
Any citizen sitting for a gaff with Dr. Luncheon, as with President Ramotar, would marvel at the simplicity and humility of these souls, these iconic sons of the soil, these leaders who battled decades, wearing their white beards as badge of honour for experienced wisdom.
Dr Luncheon’s intelligence, his eloquence, his clarity of thinking in formulating large compound sentences that lift one’s mind to engage him word for word, or miss his meaning, make him an exotic treasure of our Public Service.
Whilst his work may seem bureaucratic and weighty, he performs it with a love and a passion that few could rival. The man is a walking State institution today.
He has served the PPP for decades and decades, standing up as a frontline leader of the ruling party, showcasing the future of Guyana as we work together as one people, of all background, of all intellectual levels, of all ages. The ruling party stands stronger, more resilient, sturdier and on a surer footing with leaders like Dr. Luncheon taking on the mantle of mentorship for the future.
We would entreat folks like Brigadier David Granger and Carl Greenidge and Dr. Rupert Roopnarine to take a leaf out of Dr. Luncheon’s book, to serve our nation as elder statesmen with the singular goal of serving the Guyanese people, whatever the position and whatever the sacrifice, only dedicating themselves with a heart of care to the cause of national development.
Dr. Luncheon looks out from behind his iconic glasses at the Guyanese society, and sees with deep hindsight and insight what many of us cannot comprehend. He’s gone through so much of our history. He’s walked the long hard road with Dr. Jagan fighting for our nation’s democratic soul to be awakened. He’s seen victory. He’s spent decades in the trenches, belying the theory that political parties in this country pamper to ethnic and racial enclaves: Dr. Luncheon is popular across the country, loved and admired and adored across Berbice, Essequibo, Demerara and the hinterland. He’s shown what it takes to break the stereotypes and the deadened molds of expectations, to quietly create a new paradigm. The Guyanese people would forever be grateful to this iconic leadership figure of the ruling party.
Now, he commands the respect of even Opposition members, and even those crass semi-literate reporters who find jobs in mediocre media outfits refrain from conveying bad stuff about him.
Such has been his service to us, that quietly, with no fanfare, no drum beating, no chest-thumping, we see Dr. Luncheon as a national icon, a gracious presence within the Government.
How much would we shine on the global stage were our Public Service to follow the exemplary service of Dr. Luncheon, working not for what he could gain from his position, but for what he could give to his nation.
We owe leaders like Dr. Luncheon a rousing national applause, this astonishing icon of the 21st century Guyanese Public Service. He’s set the bar high; he’s established the standard; he’s written the code of service to the people: he’s showcased, with his own personal exemplary leadership, what it takes to reform and build an efficient, professional, service-oriented Public Service.
By Shaun Michael Samaroo
