By Clifford Stanley

President David Granger on Monday urged Region Five officials to “let bygones be bygones”, as he sought to put an end to the long rift between APNU+AFC councillors and Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal.“Work together; let nothing impede the development of this beautiful Region,” the President appealed in an address to a large gathering at the basketball court at Ithaca, West Bank Berbice during Emancipation Day celebrations.

The crowd responded to these words with loud cheers; and cheered even louder when APNU Councillor Carol Joseph reached out to shake the hand of People’s Progressive Party/Civic Regional Chairman Vickchand Ramphal, indicating that the standoff, which started in January last, had come to an end.

Joseph was soon after simultaneously embraced by PPP Member of Parliament Harry Gill on the left and Chairman Ramphal on the right, in a gesture seeming to convey that ‘love was in the air’. The crowd again cheered lustily.

President Granger’s intervention was greatly appreciated by all, since in a sense he was seen to be the aggrieved party in the matter that caused the conflict, and it was therefore felt that he would be the best person to bring the imbroglio to an end.

The camaraderie occurred amidst throbbing African drums and African folk dances being performed as the appetizing smells of conkie and other African delicacies filled the air.

The historic occasion was witnessed by Minister of Social Cohesion, Amna Ally; APNU/AFC Member of Parliament (MP) Jenny Wade; councillors of the Region 5 Regional Democratic Council, and adults and children from Ithaca and surrounding villages.

President Granger said that August 1st must be seen as an occasion for the entire nation, without distinction, to celebrate; since it is a day that brought Guyanese together to become a nation.

He also assured that his administration intends to be fully involved in achieving the objectives set by the United Nations (UN) International Decade for People of African Descent (2014-2024).

He told the gathering that Ithaca epitomises the Village Movement that was started by ex-slaves shortly after Emancipation 178 years ago.

“Whether Ithaca, Lichfield, Victoria, those early days marked the beginning of the Village Movement in our country,” he declared. He then pointed out that all the ethnic groups who came to Guyana because of the emancipation of slavery had, over time, become participants in the burgeoning Village Movement, and all the villages had been built and developed on four pillars, namely: the home, the church, the school and the farm.

“All our ethnic groups developed homes, churches or masjids or mandirs, and schools and farms…. Our forefathers wanted homes to start families. They wanted the church or mandir or masjid so they could benefit from spirituality and encourage good moral behaviour in the communities. They saw the importance of education for their children — as a means of escaping from poverty; and they saw the importance of work.

“The villages were the cradles of Guyanese society for all…. They were conceived by our fore-parents as the home for the generations to come. This is what our forefathers did, and that is what we must continue. These four pillars must never be neglected by our villages. Every child must go to school,” the President said.

He added: “The link with the churches, the mandirs and the masjids and the schools, which fostered spirituality and good moral behavior, must be re-established. Youths must strive to work as business people; as entrepreneurs. Let us never forget these four pillars of our villages.

“My brothers and sisters of Ithaca, if you shake these pillars of home, church, school and farm, the house will fall down! Keep your village firmly established on those four pillars, and work with them to improve the quality of life in the community and ensure that the sacrifices of your forefathers are not in vain.”

He then made some special remarks to Guyanese of African descent, assuring that the Government saw involvement in the United Nations (UN) International Decade for People of African descent as mandatory. “Africans are victims of the greatest crime against humanity. The harm that has been left by those whips and chains has left indelible scars in the entire Western Hemisphere. We in Guyana will try to fulfill those UN goals by 2024, because we feel that if we do not, Guyanese of African origin will not achieve Emancipation.

“Emancipation is not something that happened 178 years ago; Emancipation is continuous. We have to keep
ourselves working to keep from being enslaved; we have to keep ourselves focused on the objectives of our forefathers — of building a strong nation,” the President said.

The three-hour-long programme included the distribution of bicycles to 20 students of Ithaca. The bicycles were donated by Immediate Past President of the Guyana Bahamas Association, Deavindra Jagroo.

Some 125 senior citizens of the village were given food hampers and sports equipment, and gears were handed over to the youth representative of the village.
Schoolchildren were given buttons with the words “Every child in school”, and green exercise books.

“Let us think about the future; about the children. The future belongs to them, and let us deliver to them a region in a better situation than we found it,” President Granger urged the reconciled Region Five councillors.

Regional Executive Officer (REO) Ovid Morrison thanked all who helped to make the event a success.