Dear Editor,
I REALLY do not have the time to keep schooling Bharrat Jagdeo, but somebody has to do it.

I guess there are some limitations to studying at one of Russia’s refugee universities. Anyway, the Champion of the Earth, when asked why Irfaan Ali has vanished since his selection, retorted that President Granger only had three news conferences in nearly four years.

The PPP supporters jumped up in ecstasy, thinking that their man has scored a knockout. President Granger has had three news conferences. That is a situation I am not happy with. I think there should have been more. But there are news conferences; and there are elections campaigning. During the 2011 and 2015 elections, Mr. Granger was at the forefront of the campaign, speaking to all and sundry; including the mosquitoes. There was a reason for that. The candidate has to be visible to the electorate.

The reason being is that he can be interrogated; he can articulate his plans if elected among other things. But most importantly, he can portray the image of being presidential. That will earn him votes. He can go in the streets, shaking random hands, lifting random babies for the cameras and engaging with the electorate. He can also attend functions, with his wife and kids at his side, portraying the image of a stable family man. All this is important for a candidate who is not well known.

A news conference can also be for campaigning, since it places the candidate in front of a potentially hostile media;but most news conferences are to share information.
But during election season, they can also serve for election campaigning. During the last four years of the APNU-AFC government, President Granger was not campaigning, therefore to compare what President Granger did over the past year to what Irfaan Ali is not doing makes no sense. The context is totally different; one is for communicating the government’s policies while the other is election campaigning. One needs to be done about once per month; while the other needs to be done every day.

Irfaan Ali’s absence from news conferences during a campaign season is concerning his presence; but sidelining major national and international events is of concern. That he is never the main speaker at political rallies is of concern, because it’s election season. Jagdeo has hidden him away like a secret boyfriend. All we see of him is a few handshakes and few smiles. I don’t think he is that appealing. Why have him only doing that? How can that promote him as a Presidential candidate?

Point I am making is that President Granger’s absence from news conferences is not the same as Irfaan Ali’s absence from campaigning. Secondly, President Granger is the incumbent president, and is well known around Guyana and the Caribbean. News Conferences, for him, would be an opportunity for him to articulate his Government policies and champion his record. It is not for him to promote himself as the APNU-AFC President. President Granger is well known, while Irfaan is virtually unknown. Who needs the publicity?

That’s it, Bharrat Jagdeo! You have earned yourself a massive fail for your comparison! Try again! In concluding, I would say it is impossible for the red rubber stamp to make an impression in the absence of ink.

Regards
Dr. Mark Devonish