Having read and heard about Guyana’s contribution to the people of Haiti to help bring relief to them at this their hour of need, I am heartened by the swift response and efforts by Government to organise this national effort.

This will show the rest of the world the unity that exists in Guyana, and I think it sends a message that Guyana’s economy has been resilient in the face of the global financial and economic crisis that has caused the economies of many developed countries to buckle.

It certainly was good to see that others supported President Jagdeo’s call for this, even the Leader of the Opposition and other opposition parliamentary parties. What worries me, however, is the Alliance For Change’s (AFC’s) stance on the matter encouraging persons to move away from the national effort and have their own collection exercises.

This is totally anti-nationalist in nature and for the AFC to be doing this shows just what the party really is. This is a national effort where anyone can make a donation, it causes less confusion, so people are not donating to 10 different places. It makes good sense for accountability, because let’s face it, not everyone is so selfless, and yet we have people trying to get the nation to move away from this because it’s something that Government organised.

It’s really ridiculous that people who are grown and considered intellectuals who should have the nation at heart would act this way. Instead of dividing the nation on this, the party should have been happy that this unity would be more visible in this act, instead because it is a Government effort, they would try to get people to move their support.

The Guyanese people are good at heart and I am sure will support this, since it is not a political effort, but one of which the people of Guyana, the nation of Guyana, is seeking to help the people of our sister-country Haiti in their time of suffering.

I would just like to encourage the public to donate as much as they can, because every little bit will help, since Haiti has suffered a huge loss that we cannot begin to rationalise for ourselves. We are in a position to lend a helping hand and we should do so wholeheartedly.
DAVID LEWIS