– reaffirms PPP’s commitment to sugar industry and its thousands of workers

THE General-Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), Mr. Clement Rohee blasted A Partnership for National Unity’s (APNU), Carl Greenidge for his condemnation of the composition of the new Board of Directors of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

At a press conference at Freedom House yesterday he said, “The PNC/APNU continues its vulgar attacks on the sugar industry and sugar workers, thus putting the country’s economy at risk and the livelihood of sugar workers at stake.
“…at the announcement of the new Board of Directors, Carl Greenidge lambasted the composition of the Board, attacked the credentials, and even the race of the members and made it clear that ‘the Government should harbour no illusions about the likelihood of parliamentary support for the future request for funds for GuySuCo.’”
According to Rohee, by Greenidge’s own statement he has usurped the authority of the entire Parliament by sending a clear signal that he will obstruct support for the sugar industry and sugar workers.
“We are not surprised by his statement because in the last several debates in the parliament he opposed the appropriation of funds for the industry. In fact he is determined to take bread out of the mouth of sugar workers who have made so much sacrifice for this country,” the PPP General-Secretary said.
He highlighted that Greenidge’s recent comments are similar to that of former PNC Member of Parliament (MP), Tony Vieira, who had called for the sector to use its resources and move from sugar production to tilapia farming.
“The PNC/APNU is bent on destroying the lives of sugar workers. The political ambitions of the PNC/APNU are driving their decisions to do all that they can to impede the recent progress in the industry. Success will hamper their political aspirations,” Rohee said.
The General-Secretary added that if Greenidge’s comments are acted on, it will not only destroy the lives of sugar workers, but it will also damage the economic activities of the entire country and specifically the thriving businesses around the sugar estates and the businesses that depend on the sugar industry to sustain their operations and their workers.
He said, “Greenidge must stop the reckless behaviour so commonplace in his Party and do what is best for all of Guyana and not just the very narrow interest of the PNC/APNU.
“Mr. Greenidge’s statements’ with respect to sugar is astounding, if not puzzling to say the least. It is to be recorded that during his tenure at the ACP Secretariat in Brussels and the Netherlands, Greenidge like other members of the ACP were fully up-to-speed with the challenges facing the sugar industries in the ACP countries. He was part and parcel of the heated and prolonged debates about the future of sugar, when the EU Commission halted to save the preferential market access to EU markets as well as the difficult and complex regulations at the WTO. But now he has thrown all of this behind and like the typical opportunistic politician has abandoned all that the ACP countries stood and fought for in exchange for cheap politicking – sugar workers must reject this!”
To this end, Rohee reaffirmed the ruling party’s commitment to the sugar industry and its thousands of workers.
“The PPP wants to make it very clear as it did in the past that it will continue to give full support to the industry because we understand the challenges and the need to create the environment for a better life for all those who depend on the industry,” he stressed.