By Melina Harris
THE “mother of all elections” is finally here. It seemed like the campaigns and rallies have been going on for ages but March 2, 2020 is finally upon us. I would be remiss to say that I have not felt the effects of this elections season because, until recently, I had been rather apolitical. I must confess that whilst living in the UK I voted on perhaps only one occasion. My reasons were that I did not feel as though the system was created to benefit me so, my form of protest was to abstain from politics and obviously elections and voting. However, since moving back to Guyana, I have to admit that I have been caught up in the fanfare.
I came back to Guyana because I intuitively felt that the wheel of fortune had begun to turn in favour of Guyanese. I felt that under this progressive government I would be able to play a role in Guyana’s development for the better. I saw quite clearly that there had been a paradigm shift or that one is still underway. I strongly believed that once Guyanese relationship ended with the previous government, we were able to assess the relationship objectively and saw that it had not been beneficial to us. I believed that the current administration, which narrowly defeated the previous administration that enjoyed a 23- year tenure in office, had Guyanese best interests at heart. I also believed that Guyanese had become unsatisfied with stagnation, corruption and the “cowboy country” that Guyana had become. In May 2015, Guyanese sent a clear signal that it was time to move forward with progress and nation-building.

I remain convinced that the current A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU + AFC) coalition government has started on the process of proper nation-building. This much is evident by the long list of developments that have taken place in Guyana since their election to office in 2015. Although Guyana recently celebrated its 50th Republic Anniversary, progress over the years has been slow and often times, non-existent. It still astounds my mind that a country like Guyana that is so bountiful and rich in resources could at the same time be so poverty-stricken. I have constantly asked what happened to the bauxite money, the rice money, the gold money and the sugar money. Surely a country as resource wealthy as Guyana should have been much further along the developmental timeline.

The short answer to my question above is greed and corruption. For a very long time Guyanese have been robbed by those they chose, and I use that word lightly, to elect to office. There are innumerable scandals to list where enormous sums of money have been “invested” or spent with little to no results or return on investment. Then there are the instances where the money has just disappeared. The country was being robbed blindly whilst a small percentage of Guyanese became scandalously wealthy. The previous government was responsible for this decline in progress along with those citizens who benefited from their actions.

When I first got back here, I spent a lot of time observing Guyanese attitude toward the current administration. On the one hand, folks were happy for a change. They wanted to see different faces who were all about Guyana and helping Guyanese move forward together towards a good life. On the other hand, there were those who were frustrated that money was not flowing as much as it was during the time of the previous administration. Many were frustrated that the “narco-state” that Guyana had become was no longer as fruitful as it once had been. I was confused. This group seemed to care nothing about the wanton disregard for the value of human life, human suffering and human progress. They preferred the “free-for-all” administration. They preferred the “cowboy nation” because money was easier to obtain then. They preferred that the rule of law be dictated by those who saw themselves as powerful and above the law.

Guyanese relationship with their government has changed over the last few years, but the shift in culture is still underway. Another thing I observed was that many disenfranchised citizens often blamed the government for all aspects of their lives not going well. Let me say this: so my message of hope is that on this momentous day, Guyanese take ownership of their lives and destiny. Hope, for me, does not mean wishing that the desired outcome will manifest without the proper work being done. Hope means doing everything in my ability to bring about the desired outcome I wish to see. I encourage all against inaction and complacency, because we cannot afford to go back to the dark days from whence we came. I truly believe that we have only just begun to see the potential that this great young nation has. Let us not invest in pipe dreams and false promises. Let us stand unified, shoulder to shoulder, all ages, races, religions, colours and creeds. Guyana is moving forward and I hope all Guyanese see that they must be a part of the forward movement.