LEADER of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, has said that accusations levelled against the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) by the governing coalition and social and political commentators will be challenged by facts.
“We will challenge everything, area after area, and we will dismantle every single accusation that was made against the PPP before the next elections,” Jagdeo stated at a public forum to mark the anniversary of October 5, 1992, when the PPP was returned to office after 28 years in opposition.
At the forum, held at the Red House, he said that the government had accused the PPP of mismanaging the country and also implied that the local economy did not develop under the PPP.
However, Jagdeo contended that the same critics who said that the PPP was accumulating debts, failed to outline the fact that the debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) figures were lowered during his party’s time in Government.
“…during that period Guyana also moved up the World Bank ranking to an upper middle-income country,” he stated, while contending that the PPP managed the country in the interest of the people.
He contended that the PPP did not get any credit for reforms it undertook, including creating the most comprehensive procurement act in the British Commonwealth.
The former President stated that the post-1992 period was a true expression of democracy, and the elections of October 5, 1992 marked “the dawn of a new era.”
Former Attorney General Anil Nandlall indicated that after the elections, the PPP commenced a wave of actions to bring about democracy, including amending the constitution.
“Some 200 changes were made to the constitution since the party got into government, and during this process, persons from different parties had an equal opportunity of being a part of the constitutional reform committee,” Nandlall indicated.
Thus, he expressed that the PPP made the constitution one of the most liberal and democratic ones in the world, which also led to expanded protection for people across the country with the establishment of rights commissions and so forth.
As the discussion progressed, Jagdeo instigated an analysis of the APNU+AFC’s progress so far, noting that they have gone right back to the “Burnhamite philosophy” of running the state.