BY Ariana Gordon

EMPHASISING national unity as an imperative for the development of Guyana, President David Granger has flayed race-based politics and has urged greater unity among the Guyanese people.Delivering remarks at the Peoples National Congress Reform’s (PNCR) 19th Biennial Congress, held at the Party’s headquarters at Congress Place in Sophia on Friday night, The President said, “The PNC is proud of its ideology of inclusivity; proud to be part of APNU, (and) is proud to be part of the APNU+AFC coalition Administration.”

In the presence of his cabinet members, including Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo; Vice President Khemraj Ramjattan; and Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson — all AFC members — the President referred to the history of the PNCR and said that five years ago, in July 2011, the party, in pursuit of its promise to provide a good life for all citizens, established a partnership with four other parties — the Guyana Action Party (GAP), the Justice for All party (JFP), the National Front Alliance and the Working People’s Alliance (WPA).

President Granger, also leader of the PNCR, said the objective of forming the partnership was to give institutional life to that party’s ideological faith and move towards transforming the country’s confrontational and winner-takes-all political culture.

The PNCR, founded by former President Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham and Joseph Latchmansingh, has always believed in inclusionary democracy, President Granger said.

In contesting the November 2011 general and regional elections, he said, the APNU+AFC gained 139,678 votes and won 26 seats in the 65-member National Assembly. Five years later, the PNCR reaffirmed its commitment to the partnership, which has not only become a household name, but is also “a beacon of hope” to thousands of Guyanese.

The idea of the partnership, President Granger said, was not a political experiment, but was an act of faith, “an expression of our party’s belief that our partnership is the best example of how Guyanese can work together for the common good.”

He made it clear that the coalition’s objective is not to oppose the Opposition People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC), but to propose a new approach to governance.

“The coalition is the boardwalk against cronyism, corruption and criminality; the misgovernment which dragged our country to the edge of catastrophe and into the pits of human underdevelopment,” said President Granger, who noted that Guyana’s record for criminal activities was so bad that the administration is “now trying to clean up the mess.”

That aside, he reminded, the PNCR has also been a party that has been inspired to make Guyana a nation of unity, security and prosperity. He noted that the country’s celebration of its 50th independence anniversary ought not only to remind citizens of the past, but should serve as an opportunity to renew commitment to the future of the country, as was the case on May 26, 1966.

NO PLACE FOR RACISM
The President sounded a clear warning that there is no place for racism and division in Guyana. He noted that the coalition government he leads is working assiduously to ensure there is social cohesion.

He acknowledged that there remains within the country “social erosion” that can trigger civil violence, as was evident in the past under the former administration.

“We can still see how easy it is for the ranting of a few persons to rekindle racial animosity; a retrograde step which has no place in modern society. It is a shame! The PNCR is alarmed at the vocal efforts by those persons to promote social division,” he said.

“We want to warn that such inflammatory tirades run the risk of degeneration; degenerating into social instability; degenerating into the fostering of distrust, into the fermenting of disorder; and we can see what…impact those words have had in other regions of the earth today,” President Granger continued.

He stressed that there is no place for racism here, and urged party supporters to “exhibit the spirit or social cohesion”, which he reminded is premised on combating exclusion and marginalization.

“Guyana is a small state of ¾ of a million people. We possess bountiful natural resources and beautiful people…we need not be divided; we need to build cooperative relationships at all levels of society. Among our religions, ethnic groups, our political parties, among our communities in the hinterland and on the coastland,” he added.

President Granger reminded that discord arising out of economic, political, religious or other differences has the potential to spurn hatred, as was the case in 1964 and 2002. He said the memories of those disturbances have not been erased from the minds of supporters, and he emphasized that the coalition has vowed to never have such incidents recur.

He called on the party’s partners to work together to repair the damage done to the nation, and rebuild the bases of a moral community.

“We are a multi-religious, multi-ethnic and multi-cultural country, and we always will be. When you mix, you mix forever. Our diversity is an asset, not a liability. We are proud of belonging to a society of many faiths, cultures; we are proud of the mosaic of ethnicities in our country,” remarked the president.

Meanwhile, Chairman of the PNCR, Basil Williams, noted that the significance of the Congress is inescapable. It is the first time in 23 years that the Leader of the party is the President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana.

“It is also the first time in 52 years that the Prime Minister in these hallowed Halls is from another Party and Coalition partner, the AFC; this is without question a good augury,” said Williams.

He noted that, as a party in Government, “the nature of our approach to its business and operations must perforce change. It must, in the first instance, be a supportive role; be the eyes and ears of the Government”.

The Party, he argued, must be on the ground, at the grass roots and all areas of society; an effectively functioning Party machinery would be an invaluable adjunct, he added.

The Chairman urged that the mandate of the coalition government be continued to remove divisions between the coast and hinterland.

Williams paid tribute to those who struggled for the party’s cause over the past 23 years. “They did not live to see the change, but I know that all they would ask is for us to be steadfast. Debbie Bakker; Sabrina and Sonia Nedd; Veronica Delph “Polo” and Robert Waddle to name a few; I salute you!”