– they betrayed the people
AGRICULTURE Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy yesterday noted that the combined Opposition, A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and the Alliance for Change (AFC), has seen the reaction of the people to their “ludicrous” proposals on the future of the sugar industry and backed down.

According to him, the parties cannot “hide behind smokescreen” as it is clear their positions were a betrayal of thousands of hard-working Guyanese people.
He said, “I would be relieved because closing down sugar would be a colossal mistake for Guyana, but I am worried because their denials are only smokescreens to hide the true intent of AFC and APNU to close down GuySuCo.
“The denial from the AFC and APNU only resulted from the solidarity of sugar workers and other stakeholders.
“The AFC and APNU made an about-turn because they fear the wrath of the people. But people will not forget that APNU and the AFC hold close to their bosom a Guyana without sugar in the future.
“Mr. Vieira now says that he never made the proposal and Mr. Nagamoottoo has stated that AFC never supported APNU’s plan. Mr. Vieira cannot remove himself and he is shameless in denying what he has been saying for some time now.
“Mr. Nagamoottoo cannot now heal the wounds or repair the damage his leader, Mr. Ramjattan, did in being a poodle of APNU.”
Ramsammy referenced the latest release from APNU, which stated that the current Administration should have given the contract to construct the Skeldon Factory to either a Brazilian or Indian Company.
“This is totally misrepresenting the facts and it is a smokescreen to distract people from the almost unanimous rebuke from the people for their proposal to close down the Guyana Sugar Corporation,” he said.
EXPOSED
The Minister made it clear that the intent of the APNU and the AFC to close or reduce the sugar industry, if given a chance to govern Guyana, has been exposed.”
He said, “They are now stunned by the swiftness of the people’s response in rejecting their proposal to close the industry.
“With nowhere to hide, both parties now are scrambling to find a way to extricate themselves from a position that is indefensible, which is insulting to people’s intelligence, and which will set Guyana once again on the road to poverty, the only road APNU knows.”
Ramsammy stressed that the 20,000 people who work with GuySuCo, in one way or another, and their families were threatened and they made their voices heard.
He said, “The denial of both APNU and AFC that they ever made a proposal to close the industry was motivated by the immediate response by people across the country in rejecting the proposal out of hand.
“My rejection of their proposal is not only my position as the Minister of Agriculture, it is my genuine belief. It is also a reflection of how sugar workers and their families feel and it is a reflection of how most people in Guyana feel.”
INSULT
The Minister contends that the APNU and the AFC, having discovered the truth, now insult the intelligence of the Guyanese people with their denials.
He said, “The problem is that Mr. Vieira, in a long letter that was prominently carried in the newspapers earlier, had detailed the proposal to use the cane fields to cultivate tilapia. He had used figures to show that tilapia would be more profitable than sugar. He was wrong on the figures and he was wrong to propose that tilapia replaces sugar. Mr. Vieira repeated his position at an official media conference hosted by APNU. He was presented by Mr. Harmon at the conference as one of the experts in the Agriculture Cluster of APNU. Mr. Vieira referred the media to his website and to his position on sugar.”
Ramsammy acknowledged the APNU’s right to change their position, but stressed that the truth is they did signal their intention to close the sugar industry and replace it with tilapia and have now changed their position.
He said, “They made an argument that tilapia is more profitable than sugar. It was stated and it was a written proposal by Mr. Vieira. He referred to his proposal at an official APNU Media Conference and no one told the media then that that was Mr. Vieira’s personal view. He was presenting APNU’s position on agriculture.
“The media across Guyana also heard Mr. Ramjattan stated very clearly that the AFC supports the position of APNU to close down GuySuCo. Indeed, in supporting APNU’s position, Mr. Ramjattan stated that the PPP/C will not listen to a sound proposal because the PPP/C Cabinet members are too ‘hard ears’.
“The AFC’s denial now is only as a result of the backlash from sugar workers and their families and people in general across Guyana.”
Considering the reversal of both parties on their earlier held positions and their defence in backing down from said position, Ramsammy reiterated that this is nothing less than an insult.
He said, “It is one thing to find out you are wrong and admit it, but to lie to people and say you never proposed or say you never supported the closure of the sugar industry is not only insulting them, but it demonstrates total disregard for their welfare.
“The truth is that the AFC in particular betrayed the sugar workers and their families and now are trying to rescue themselves from the wrath of the very people that they claim they care about.
“I do not have to convince anyone that APNU and AFC stood in unity to call for the closure of the sugar industry and replace it with tilapia. The people of Guyana know the truth.”
INCLINATION TO MISLEAD
The Minister decried the combined Opposition’s predisposition and inclination to “misrepresent facts and misinform people” and described this trait as legendary.
He said, “People in Guyana and elsewhere expect that the AFC and APNU would knowingly twist the facts and misrepresent them to suit their callous intentions.
“For instance, APNU now states that the PPP/C Government should have given the Skeldon Factory construction contract to either a Brazilian or Indian Company.
“The PPP/C is well aware that there are credible Indian and Brazilian companies that would have been good candidates for the construction of the Skeldon Factory. But it is not up to the Government of Guyana to select any company just because we know they can do the job. The Skeldon Factory construction was advertised in a public tender, as are all our construction works, in accordance with the laws and regulations of Guyana. We are obligated to tender for any construction work and in the case of the Skeldon Sugar Factory, we strictly followed the laws.
“In that tender, there was no Brazilian company that tendered for the construction of the Skeldon Factory. Therefore, APNU’s assertion that the Skeldon Factory construction should have been awarded to a Brazilian company would have been contrary to the law.
“We could not then or now award a contract to a handpicked company, particularly since the company did not even tender.”
If this was done, Ramsammy had no doubt that the APNU and the AFC would have chastised the government for acting illegally.
He continued, “As for an Indian Company, there was a bid from an Indian company. But that bid was higher than the one from the Chinese Company. Had we awarded the contract to the Indian ompany, we would have been accused by these same individuals of favouring that company.
FACTS ARE CLEAR
According to the Agriculture Minister, the facts are clear on the issue.
He said, “People should know that the bids were evaluated by Booker-Tate experts and the recommendation for the Chinese company, which had the lowest price, was based on a technical evaluation that found the company had the technical qualifications for the award.
“The PPP/C is bound to act in accordance with the law. APNU and AFC find any argument they can to misrepresent the truth; and in this case APNU is dead wrong again.”
He maintained that the revised positions of the combined Opposition are simply another smokescreen to fool the Guyanese people.
Ramsammy said, “The people are too intelligent for the falsehoods and bogus positions of APNU and AFC.
“APNU and AFC, particularly the AFC, have found discomfort in the wrath of the people in the sugar belt and they are scrambling to find a way out.
“But the proposal to close down GuySuCo is a true reflection of the intentions both APNU and AFC have, even if they now deny that they made such a proposal.
“APNU’s main partner, the PNC, has a history of wanting to close the sugar industry. They hired Booker-Tate to manage the industry in 1989, with a mandate to prepare it for privatisation and for the closing of the Demerara Sugar Estates. Had they won the elections in 1992, the Demerara Sugar Estates would not be operating today. That is the truth.
“Throughout the 1990s, on several occasions MPs from the PNC, the precursor of APNU, called for the closure of the Demerara Sugar estates. The present call to end sugar and replace it with tilapia is in the same vein as their earlier efforts to close the Demerara Sugar Estates.
“The AFC recklessly supported APNU’s proposal. I recalled that when I heard the proposal on Tuesday, I specifically called on Mr. Ramjattan to come out and either reject APNU’s proposal or state his support for that proposal. In less than 24 hours after my call, Mr. Ramjattan stated clearly that the AFC was in total support of APNU’s position on sugar.
“Mr. Vieira’s position now that he never called for the closure of sugar and Mr. Nagamootto’s denial that the AFC supported such a call is reprehensible.”
The Agriculture Minister suggested that the better option for APNU and AFC would have been for them to admit that, on reflection, the proposal to replace sugar with tilapia was indeed a mistake.