THE many activities taking place in Guyana, almost simultaneously, inject positive vibes as we approach the first 1000 days since our coalition was elected to office in May, 2015.
I believe that the latest infomercial, “One Guyana”, captures this graphically when it refers to the “surge in confidence in the way Guyana is being governed again” and that our country is on the road to national transformation.

MINI DEBATES
For anyone who is interested in progress inside what used to be a badly mis-managed and corrupted state, the mini debates as to whether a new, concrete road should be built in Mabaruma or Mahdia, instead of somewhere else, comes over as political fun.

Whether a new bridge should be constructed at Tabatinga or a Magistrate’s Court at Lethem, in the Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo (Region Nine); or a state radio station at Aishalton or Orealla, or somewhere else becomes the talking points on development, not stagnation.

I am hoping that during the first week next month, when we celebrate 1000 days of progress, that the new, spacious, modern Departure Lounge at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport would be commissioned. Departure would now be facilitated by a jet bridge that connects the terminal gate to the aircraft.

But I wouldn’t be surprised that another mini debate would surface over whether there should be five or 10 jet bridges!
Whether we commission one or three pedestrian overpasses or crossings over busy traffic, one or 10 wells, one or several pumps, 10 or 20 ICT hubs, schools and school buses, markets, health centres, street lamps etc., the narrative unmistakably is one of progress. Guyana is on the move, again.

KEEP MOVING
It reminds me of an inspirational speech by Martin Luther King at a college graduation ceremony. He told the students that life is a journey towards a destination. They could get there by walking, riding, or even crawling. It does not matter how you get there; just keep moving.

I think that it would be safe to say that in spite of pockets of non-cooperation and an inexplicable, anti-national hate drive, our government did not stand still. We moved forward, every day, all the time. When we look back, we could say that the journey in the first 1000 days was bumpy with a few slips and slides, and also challenging. But we came through with shining colours, on most fronts, even while conceding that we could have done better in some other areas.

No bump nor slide, however, could be more tragic than the cowardly appeal to investors to stay away from Guyana. It baffles the mind that the “independent” press would find it profitable or convenient to publish that advertisement. But, then, the free press is indeed free to do as it pleases, to uphold the right even of dissident-free expression (New York Times v Sullivan).

LOVE OF COUNTRY
What it exposes unfortunately is that love of country is not a value inherent to everyone. It is what we choose to embrace and cherish as life itself. This message was conveyed in a Bollywood movie, “Rangoon”, a love tragedy that was played out during the Second World War.

The heroine Julia had journeyed to Burma to entertain British troops, a contingent of which was made up of Indian soldiers. She fell in love with sergeant Malik, an Indian soldier who was secretly a loyalist of the rebel Indian National Army of Subash, Chandra Bose. Though he fought against the Japanese invaders, Malik hated the British for denying independence to India. His life was in danger.

In one memorable scene, Julia asked Malik a simple question: “What is more important than life?” His answer was, “something for which one could die”. There was no doubt that when he was killed by the British, he had sacrificed his life for his country’s freedom – for him, a cause more noble than his life.

That was a choice that Malik had made, and there are many other lessons in history where, before dying fighters wrote with their blood as Walter Rodney once reminded us, the word “liberty”. The battle-cry of the Cuban revolutionaries, was “Patria O Muerte” – Country or Death!

LURE OF POWER
The “Beware” ad is just the opposite of such patriotic impulse. It is part of the hate hurdle along the path to progress, which cannot be ignored, but must be surmounted. We could do so by collectively ascending to higher levels of political conduct that would put country first, even while we understand that occasionally the lure of power would titillate the appetite of some individuals and make them behave irrationally, or even against the country’s interests.

The better news is that many investors have ignored the ad as just dirty trash, and have emerged from the Guyana Petroleum Business Summit and Exposition (GIPEX) with greater resolve to enter the windows of opportunities in Guyana via the vehicle of capital and technology

Scaring investors is a lost cause. I saw how the campaign to keep Indian investors from involvement in the sugar industry contributed to the displacement of workers. I had met with one such investor from India, whose company manages some 35 sugar factories in several countries.

He told me that given a chance, his company could rehabilitate the Skeldon factory within three months, and that it could speedily increase the 10 MW power supply from the co-generating facility to 90 MW. All of Berbice and beyond, could have benefitted from cheaper electricity. But the potential investors were scared away with false and wicked claims about “crime” and “genocide” against a particular ethnic community in Guyana.

POSITIVE ATTITUDE
But the Indians would not remain discouraged for too long. Other investors from Canada and elsewhere are flocking to these shores. That is why the Caribbean Development Bank has optimistically forecast higher economic growth, and has assured help to provide technical support to expedite implementation of development projects.

This positive attitude provides hope and assurance that we could and are capable of doing better.
This positive attitude was embraced by Kevin Ramnarine, the former Energy Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.

He not only welcomed positions taken by the Guyana Government in the oil and gas sector, but embraced the golden vision that production of 360,000 barrels of oil a day from the Liza 1 and 2 wells in the not too distant future, will transform Guyana.
For all Guyanese, keep hope alive!