IN Tony Vieira’s recent letter featured in the Kaieteur News, is he really asking the public to decide who the dinosaur is?I found the question to be distinctly rhetorical and self-abasing on his part. Even so, the tone of Vieira’s letter is deeply shocking because he has the boldness to cite a court ruling and history. If I may, Guyanese would recall Tony Vieira was a member of a political outfit that was and still is dictatorial. Tony Vieira advocated the People’s National Congress (PNC) that has a record of dismal governance which tyrannically suppressed the freedom of expression and media rights. In history, no other commonwealth of the Caribbean has stifled and usurped this fundamental entitlement of freedom of expression. Furthermore, no member that is associated with the PNC regime, such as Tony Vieira, should dare to speak about freedom of expression. Editor, I think it is also right of me to reminisce on the events that transpired throughout the PNC era to monopolise and prohibit freedom of expression. As this was the autocratic political platform Vieira’s allied with. I would recount the PNC Government had denied Dr. Cheddi Jagan the privilege of speaking in the National Assembly and barred him from any media rights. Frontally, why did Vieira not cite this eventful disregard for freedom of expression action against Dr. Jagan? Meanwhile, during this time, many journalists were murdered and imprisoned simply because they were critical of the PNC government. The self-empowered PNC administration that Vieira supported painstakingly did everything to control the media and freedom of expression. In such a manner, between 1971 and 1972, Mr. Burnham issued two trade orders which prohibited the importation of newsprint, book binding and printing equipment. These orders alone undermined the guaranteed constitutional right of freedom of expression article 146. Mr. Burnham also ceased licensing and denied newsprint for the Mirror newspaper. The Mirror was eventually forced to halt its publication. Is this the form of changes and fair media rights Vieira wishes to revive? Editor, I am undoubtedly sure that Justice Lennox Deyelsingh, who ruled in the 1985 Trinidad and Tobago proceedings that Vieira extracted, would also find the PNC’s dictatorial position in breach of the constitution.
The Catholic Standard was another media the PNC regime inflicted repressive actions against, when the state-run Guyana National Printers Limited refused to continue printing the paper. This was followed by the assassination of Father Bernard Darke, who was murdered by thugs. The murdering of Father Darke illustrated the PNC’s callous measures to maintain exclusive media control. June 13, 1980, a dark day in Guyana’s history, saw the assassination of world-renowned scholar and historian Dr. Walter Rodney. Dr. Rodney’s death also amplified the autocratic stance the empowered regime exercised over freedom of expression. Simply because Dr. Rodney was a member of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) and worked publicly and collaboratively with the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) to organise referendums against the PNC Government. Editor, these unforgettable occurrences are well entrenched in our history. Vieira should have been more cautious about how he tapped into the context of history. These were the PNC’s draconian attempts to stifle freedom of expression and the press. Hence Vieira, a person that associated himself with these immoral principles, should be the last person on planet earth to preach of freedom of expression.
It was the PPP Government, coming into office in 1992, that broke the 28 years of monopolised control of free press and expression. In particular, the PPP Administration led the challenge against the PNC’s decision of the 1970s to restrict newsprint importation. The PPP advocated freedom of the press and stood in solidarity with all journalists to restore their constitutional entitlements. Under the PPP Government, the environment for free expression and a free press flourished. It was in the newly created forum that Guyana saw the establishment of two privately operated daily newspapers and the creation of television outlets that covered the three counties of Guyana. The distribution of radio licences to both public entities and individuals was granted to launch radio broadcasting hubs in Georgetown, Linden, Berbice and Essequibo. So for Vieira to utter, “It’s part of “the PPP’s agenda from day one to exclude the opposition from any participation in the state-owned media” is a blatant misconception. All media entities, including state-owned outlets, have operated freely without any suppressive interference by the PPP Government. Even the forums that are critical of the government still enjoy the rights of free expression and free press.
Editor, I would also recall the debate series aired on the National Communication Network many times invited the opposition for public dialogue. However, the opposition absented themselves. The debate series was overseen by Mr. Al Creighton to discuss various issues. The Honourable Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister Anil Nandlall, on countless occasions, invited the opposition for open debates on NCN, but they disregarded those invitations. Honourable Dr. Ashni Singh, Minister of Finance, also explicitly expressed several invitations for the opposition to discuss budgetary and financial affairs, but they also ignored these overtures.
His Excellency Donald Ramotar also extended requests for collective discussions with the opposition, but they also avoided these. Therefore, Vieira’s claims about the opposition not receiving fair media time to exercise freedom of expression are blatant lies. I am still optimistic that one day the opposition will accept these requests and engage in public discussions.
Nevertheless, the principal purpose for government information services and media outlets are to convey government ideas. This fundamental principle is applicable in all parts of the world. Vieira also made two statements in this pathetic writing and I quote, “…force the PPP to comply with their [opposition] demand” and “…to hold the government to ransom for concessions…” any civilised nation would find such statements treasonous. Are these the democratic views he endorses?
Editor, I think Vieira is also challenging your journalistic judgment to label a letter published under your approval as illiterate. Vieira is solely attempting to discredit my writings by all means and hypocritically stated, “[I] must learn to live with freedom of expression,” perhaps he should. Vieira also has the audacity to call me an illiterate without having any clue of my academic accomplishments. Even so, to make matters worse, he strenuously invested his time responding to letters he coined foolish and illiterate. I would venture to say he is totally confused and beyond illiteracy. Editor, when we assume postures and speak, we must ensure the records support us. Hence, isn’t this the same Tony Vieira that mismanaged and ruined a multimillion dollar estate he inherited and now lives in a rented house? And he brazenly called me an illiterate when he could not manage his own estate and then was forced to liquidate his television station. However, not to digress, in his letter he explicitly advocates Guyana being blacklisted for non-compliance of the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism legislation. I am even more convinced now that Vieira has lost his marbles. Moreover, he is in fact the dinosaur of a bygone era and the sooner society realises he is extinct the better for Guyana.

Mahendra Hariraj