GUYANA’S ability to manage her own affairs has been tested lately. Our institutions have been criticized, and our politicians and leaders have been cautioned by local stakeholders and the wider international community. In the midst of all of this, Guyanese have been seeking a conclusion to the March 2, 2020 Regional and General Elections.

Whilst most Guyanese, at home and in the diaspora, are anxious for the conclusion of these controversial elections, and for the restoration of normalcy in Guyana, there are those who do not believe that Guyanese are equipped to deal with our own problems.

This group of Guyanese would prefer the outside intervention of the international community, as they have been deemed by this group as more equipped to resolve Guyana’s current elections impasse. The presence of the ABCEU nations, along with other international organisations which were invited to observe our elections, has created some confusion amongst certain sections of the populace who seem to believe that these groups and their representatives have more right and power than they actually possess. That being said, the international community does play a role in some of Guyana’s affairs. Being a sovereign democratic nation, Guyana has certain obligations, and is party to numerous multilateral agreements with many of the ABCEU nations. The benefits to be derived from these partnerships and agreements are numerous, and have contributed to the development of Guyana’s economy and overall development, to an extent.

Where Guyana has garnered special attention from the international community, it has largely been in relation to our newly-acquired status as an oil- producing nation. The importance of these elections, therefore, cannot be underestimated within this context. History would indicate that where there is oil, there is usually corruption. The oil curse is no mere urban legend; it is a very real prospect for any nation with traditionally weak governance and low levels of development. Guyana is no different from many of the less developed nations that have discovered oil.

The saviours from the ABCEU nations need good puppets and comrades who would sacrifice the wealth of their nations for the benefit of themselves and of a small, well- connected oligarchy; this to the obvious detriment of the rightful beneficiaries, the Guyanese people.
Democracy and human rights are the buzzwords often used to justify the ABCEU intervention into our internal affairs, however, their true intentions are usually much more aligned with economic interests and resource-control strategies. Guyanese who might want this outside intervention, under the pretext of upholding democracy and the rule of law, would be wise to examine the ABCEU nations’ relationships with some of our non-western allies. Guyana has enough oil reserves to put us right on par with the highest oil-producing nations; enough to make us capable of influencing global oil prices. If we are not aligned with the goals of the ABCEU nations, then the oil curse becomes a very real prospect, as history would dictate. Nonetheless, we must stand on our sovereignty, and not allow the forces that seek to separate and marginalise our collective goals to achieve their aim of subverting our collective will as a people.

Education is the key differentiator between those who seek to find a saviour to intervene in Guyana’s internal affairs and those who recognise that we must save ourselves. Our laws, institutions and people are enough to guide us out of this elections impasse, and indeed further into our future development. Guyana was only earlier this year made Chair of the G77 and China Group of Nations, and was at that time deemed capable of leading these nations forward. We all celebrated this accomplishment; let us not lose sight of our potential, and let us remain steadfast in our support of our Constitution, institutions and, most importantly, ourselves.