ONE  person, one vote; three branches of government –  executive, legislature, and judiciary; national elections every five years; freedom to live anywhere, no residential segregation; no ethnic segregation in schools; journalists free to practice. These are only some of the living principles which the Guyana Constitution enshrines and to which the Government of Guyana upholds.

There are those who remain victims of colonialism and yearn for independence. There are those who live in dictatorships who clamour for freedom. Incidentally, a dictatorship is devoid of the living principles that the Guyana Constitution preserves. And yet some people do misanalyses and refer to Guyana as housing a dictatorship.

QUOTE: We need to construct some abiding optimism amid the evil that stalks this land in its bid to undermine democracy. There is no greater clarity than to see the new opposition’s effusing desperation in its disjointed quest to grab the reins of power from the PPP/C.

It is amazing that these same people are able to practice free journalism in a land they depict as housing a dictatorship; in fact, a real dictatorship prohibits free journalism.

Can these people who rant and rave that Guyana presides over a dictatorship then explain how did they procure freedom to practice their despicable brand of journalism? These journalists are free to practice in Guyana, a land they describe as a dictatorship:  a paradox by any standards, but a paradox of the new opposition’s own making; a paradox that is nonexistent, as Guyana is free.

The new opposition’s intent is to whip up frenzy to constantly paint Guyana as a dictatorship, until people start to believe that that is the case. Nonetheless, everyday, notwithstanding the context of media-driven pessimism, the Guyanese people exert great efforts to consolidate democracy in this dear land.

QUOTE: In advancing their false moral high ground and their keen proclivity to set society’s moral goals, extremists flourish on racial and ethnic insecurity and instability; which provide them with the best probability of scoring political points.

Parenthetically, this democracy is not solely about elections and vote; this democracy, as I indicated last week, includes a multi-representative democracy, a populist democracy, and a Madisonian democracy. But these elements of democracy are a work in progress; for this reason, the Guyanese people remain steadfast in their commitment to consolidate their country’s democracy.

Furthermore, we need to construct some abiding optimism amid the evil that stalks this land in its bid to undermine democracy. There is no greater clarity than to see the new opposition’s effusing desperation in its disjointed quest to grab the reins of power from the PPP/C.

Look, this democracy allows an electoral contest for political power; nonetheless, the coalition still languishing in vitro, with all the players aspiring for political leadership, and their presentation of zero platforms, induce them to perpetrate several abuses, among which is the daily abuse of press freedom.

QUOTE: There are those who remain victims of colonialism and yearn for independence. There are those who live in dictatorships who clamour for freedom. Incidentally, a dictatorship is devoid of the living principles that the Guyana Constitution preserves. And yet some people do misanalyses and refer to Guyana as housing a dictatorship.

I would not be far away from the truth if I deem some sections of the new opposition as extremists; these are sections that ‘live off’ politics. Their behaviors, especially in the media, tell the whole story. Wilcox (1996) noted that extremists tend to misrepresent reality by presenting feeling-based rather than evidence-based data; and they generally try to prevent critical examination of their beliefs. These extremists engage in cherry picking, over-generalizations, and selective observations.

Extremists also present a Manichean worldview whereby they see all issues as moral issues of good and bad and right and wrong; they have a tendency to assume moral superiority over others.

In advancing their false moral high ground and their keen proclivity to set society’s moral goals, extremists flourish on racial and ethnic insecurity and instability; which provide them with the best probability of scoring political points.