THE AFC leaders, such as Ramjattan, Trotman and Nagamootoo, are now in Berbice, trying their utmost to justify the coalition and their main argument is trying to tell the people in Berbice that the PNC under Hoyte was very different from the PNC under Burnham. They further claimed that Carl Greenidge did a fine job as Minister of Finance!
A MAN OF ‘PRINCIPLES’
These AFC con-men are now claiming that the late Desmond Hoyte was a man of principles. I cannot doubt that he had principles, just like the AFC leaders who are so versatile in rigging, stealing and corrupt practices.
The history of this country will bear testimony that the 1985 General Election under the late Desmond Hoyte was the most comprehensively rigged election, ever! Hoyte gave himself 77.6 % of the total votes cast and gave the PPP 15.6 %. Out of 294,8801 votes cast, the PNC had 228,718 votes, the PPP 45,926 votes, the UF 9,810 votes and the WPA 4,176 votes. This gave the PNC 42 seats, the PPP 8 seats, the UF 2 seats and the WPA 1 seat. Even today, the PNC is not able to get more than 135,000 votes, but after all the bad things they did to this country and its people, they got over 228,000 in 1985! What do Trotman and the AFC deceivers have to say about this? Hoyte was well-trained under Burnham and the same can be said of Granger, who was the liaison Officer to Burnham and second in command of the Army which was the tool used to massively rig the 1985 Elections.
Then what happened when the results of the 1992 Elections were declared? Hoyte claimed that the elections were rigged and whipped up frenzy and hate among his supporters. He gave them a slogan which they chanted: SLO
FYAH MO FYAH!
And it was only the timely intervention of former US President Carter on Election Day 1992 that quelled the violence which erupted by the PNC supporters when they were instigated by Hoyte’s claims of rigging.
Hoyte had ‘free and fair’ elections pushed down his throat! Economic sanctions would have been imminent if the PNC ‘misbehaved’. It must be appreciated that the PNC Government under Hoyte was under severe international pressure, especially from the U.S.
The economy was bankrupt under the PNC and international assistance would have come to an end if they did not agree to have a free and fair election in 1992; and because of this, Hoyte had an extra two years to further sell off the assets of the country. The PPP made a huge effort to cleanse the voters’ lists from 1990 to 1992, so that there would be a free and fair election. The electoral list had numerous dead and fictitious names.
Today, Ramjattan, Moses, Trotman, Ramayya and Charrandass are saying that Hoyte was a man of principles!
‘PRINCIPLES’ UNDER DURESS
Guyanese must be reminded that the removal of the ban on food items, the removal of the price control later on and foreign exchange restrictions were the direct results of the 1988 deal with the IMF and World Bank. The PNC’s neck was on the economic guillotine! But this did nothing to alleviate the sufferings of the poor in Guyana who had to pay exorbitant prices for these scarce items. The Indian businessmen whom Hoyte reached out to were the distributors of these scarce items and they made fortunes fleecing the poor people! They donated millions to the PNC coffers under Hoyte. Unfortunately, in effect, the removal of the ‘ban’ only meant that you will not be jailed for having these food items in your possession- they were still unaffordable!
The Economic Recovery programme which Hoyte introduced was drafted by Carl Greenidge but was based on recommendations from the IMF and the World Bank. These lending Institutions gave the directives, as they always do!
Two years after the PNC took office, Guyana became one of the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, with a per capita GDP of US$500. Hoyte, in 1988, went to the IMF and the World Bank for help and it was the IMF who implemented the Economic Recovery Programme and Hoyte had to change course for economic survival.
‘GREAT ACHIEVEMENTS’
The PNC, under the Hoyte administration, further plunged this country downward and it was Carl Greenidge who was the architect of the economic policies of the country and indeed what an ‘economic genius’ he was!
The Guyana dollar was devalued from 4 to 1 US in 1985, to 125 to 1 US by 1992. This sent the cost of living to astronomical heights during that period, and even though the bans were lifted on food items, the Guyanese people could hardly afford them because of the poor wages and salaries they received. In 1992, the minimum wage was 65 dollars per day and that could not have bought a pound of chicken!
When Hoyte removed the ban on basic food items, these items became scarce and only PNC businessmen were given the quota of scarce food items; these greedy businessmen would normally sell a few items at control prices and then sold the rest at high black-market prices.
The ERP program did nothing to change Guyana’s fortunes since the mismanagement and corruption from PNC days under Burnham continued unabatedly. By 1991, 60 % of the population was living below the poverty line and inflation rose from 40% in 1988 to 125% in 1991. Wages and salaries fell far below the inflation rate and the Guyana dollar was devalued by more than 4,333 %.
On May Day 1991, the General Secretary of the TUC, Joseph Pollydore, lamented the fact that workers were in a state of abject poverty and cannot even buy ‘basic food’, and that the Government has left children breadless and homes rice-less because of the inability of breadwinners to buy even minimum quantities for their families’. Workers refer to the ERP program as ‘Empty Rice Pots’! The minimum wage was just a meagre $65 dollars per day- not even the price for a pound of chicken!
Furthermore, in 1990, the per capita GDP fell to US$370, and when Hoyte took over it was US$500. Moreover, during all the years under Hoyte’s administration, the GDP continued to fall, to the extent that during the 1991 Budget presentation, Finance Minister Carl Greenidge admitted that several economic indicators were doing badly. It was that same year that Guyana showed a positive economic growth of 6.1 % after 15 years of negative growth. Ironically, this economic growth was achieved only after selling off 15 of the 41 State owned enterprises at less than market value, and by rescheduling the US$2.1 billion foreign debt.
The PNC, under Hoyte, made some remarkable ‘achievements’: after the ban was removed; basic food items were scarce and unaffordable with long ‘GUYLINES” in sun and rain; we had 94 cents on every dollar going to service debts; we had no foreign currency reserve; we had a huge deficit in the Consolidated Fund of $18billion dollars; workers were pressured by heavy taxes; rice, sugar and bauxite went down to their knees! Not to mention the falling and decaying infrastructures , the 13 hours per day ‘blackouts’ and the thriving ‘back track’ business and contraband business! Many Guyanese paid between 10 and twenty thousand US to get away from this country and many thousands of families were broken. Now the PPP/C government has allowed families to be reunited since there is no need to risk one’s lives and those of their families in order to escape the ‘Hell’ the PNC created. Today, thousands of visas are given for less than US$200. That he PPP/C has made tremendous improvements to our standard of living, is indisputable!
The PPP had the Herculean task of rebuilding what the PNC destroyed through stealing and corruption, and then had to embark on building this nation from scratch. If the PPP had taken over a country with a thriving and prosperous economy, then this country would have developed far more than it has today. Furthermore, if the AFC and APNU had co-operated with the PPP Government, then this country would have gone far ahead, even though the PPP had to rebuild it from scratch. The PPP/C has successfully achieved ‘Mission Impossible’!
Conclusion
Since June 29th, 2013, I had written in the press that the AFC has betrayed the trust and confidence of its members and supporters. I then asked whether the AFC has been hijacked by the PNC members from within the AFC. It is now clear to all that this has happened!
I have spoken to some AFC members who have told me that when they moved from the PPP to the AFC, they did so simply because they had personal problems and grievances with one or two PPP officials in Region 6, but have since realised that there is a need to look at the bigger picture and to move away from petty personal issues. We must look at what legacy we can give to our children and grandchildren. Do we want to give our children and grandchildren another 28 years under the PNC? Do we want our children and grandchildren to be jailed for basic food items? Do we want our children and grandchildren to become dope addicts? Do we want to become the begging bowl of the Caribbean?
But the PNC always seems to catch a ‘packoo’. In the last election, the WPA cohabited with the PNC to give birth to APNU; and now the AFC is the newly wed of the PNC, giving birth to APNU/AFC.
None of the third parties have been able to bring any good to this country because they never understand that they have to rise above their own selfish political ambitions for the good of this country. Just look at the result of the coalition arrangement- it is simply about who get what if they should win the election. Third parties have only served to bring untold sufferings to the Guyanese people by facilitating the PNC to get into power. The question is: Will the AFC be the one to do it this time? All Guyanese are now aware that the AFC must never be trusted again!
HASEEF YUSUF
AFC Councillor Region 6
