Dear Editor,
I REFER to Mr. Kowlasar Misir’s letter published in the April15, 2020 edition of the Stabroek News, under the caption, “It was Mr. Lowenfield, Mr. Mingo and others from GECOM who birthed us this mess”. He was responding to my letter SA (2020.04.14) in which I called for an apology from critics and letter writers who had viciously ridiculed Lowenfield and senior GECOM members on the proposed workplan.

Mr. Misir vehemently objected to my position. on the ground that it was the CEO, RO (Region 4) and other GECOM staffers that got the nation into this mess. I see no sense in challenging his narrative, since he has demonstrated, in the present circumstances, an inability to separate issues, even if a failure to do so deepened the “mess” he is expressing concern about.

Reading Misir’s letter, while he recognised the election crisis as a mess, he seems not to have comprehended the potential negative consequences to the nation. He is driven by emotion, and has not come to grips with the seriousness of the situation. When that realisation clicks in, he will appreciate the wisdom of stepping back, despite one’s feelings, and separating issues: That is, the general from the particular. In doing so, he might see the value of civility in our public discourse on this sensitive issue, and refrain from propagandising on every measure GECOM takes to address the crisis.

In closing, I hope that Mr. Kowlasar Misir and I will have a meeting of minds on this salient point; regardless of how we got into the “mess”, the challenge is for us to get out with the least damage and pain.

Regards,
Tacuma Ogunseye