PRESIDENT Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali has made it clear that under the PPP/C administration, there is no place for racism, discrimination and violence. He made those remarks in his New Year’s message to the nation.

Guyana is known for the warmth and hospitality of its people, and despite our ethnic and political diversity, there is a fair measure of cultural tolerance and political accommodation. The recent Christmas holidays have demonstrated that when it comes to celebrating the birth of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, there is hardly any distinction among Guyanese in terms of race and religion. Christmas has become, over the decades, a cultural institution that transcends race, religion and creed. The same could be said of other religious festivities such as Easter, Phagwah and the Eid celebrations.

We have evolved as a society to one of higher levels of tolerance and political accommodation. We do have our political differences, but, regardless of our political affiliation, life goes on regardless of which political party or group of parties constitute the ruling administration. This is how it must be. We are not responsible for our diversity and multi-culturalism, and it, therefore, behooves us all to accept the reality of our existence, and celebrate the fact of our co-existence. Indeed, we are much richer for our ethnic and religious diversity, and we all have a role to play in preserving the peace and cohesiveness of our society.

This is why it is so important that whatever differences we have as a society, they should be settled in a legal and constitutional way. The recent behaviour displayed by the parliamentary opposition is a good example of bad parliamentary conduct, which runs counter to the norms of acceptable conduct. The same could be said of attempts by the APNU+AFC coalition to subvert the democratic will of the Guyanese people in the March 2020 General and Regional Elections. Modern society rests on the foundation of democracy and the rule of law, and any departure from those fundamental values and norms of governance will result in unnecessary wounds to the body-politic, and a departure from the norms of civilised behaviour.

President Ali, from the time he took office as the Executive President of Guyana, has committed himself to a united and prosperous Guyana. According to President Ali, “an essential part of my government is inclusion. Stop being defined by race; stop being defined by politics. Start being defined by our one nationality, and by our common love for our one country. Let us lift it up together, and by doing so, let us lift each other and ourselves.”

Like any politically plural society, there are bound to be challenges based on politics and governance, but it is the manner in which such differences are resolved within the framework of our Constitution and our laws that will ultimately define us as a society. We have had our difficult moments, but we emerged with our heads high, as we continue to put our shoulders to the wheel of our collective development.

The fact is that there is and cannot be any short-cut to the realisation of our full potential as a nation. There is simply no ‘silver bullet’. We can only realise our dreams and that of our fore-parents of a prosperous and cohesive society by dint of hard work and collective action. We are fortunate to be blessed with an abundance of fertile lands, rich mineral wealth, and a resourceful people. Now we have oil and gas. The ingredients for sustained development are all there. It is for us now to harness those resources for the common good.

Already we have garnered over US$534 million in oil revenues, and, based on preliminary projections, the country could earn billions more in the coming years. But, as President Ali said, we do not want to have a rich country of poor people; we want a society in which there is a fair and equitable distribution of our wealth, and where no citizen is left behind. And at a more fundamental level, we want a society in which there is a flourishing of the human spirit, and where we are not only materially better off, but where we enjoy the best that our society can offer, culturally and spiritually.

President Ali has demonstrated that with the political will, no challenge is too big. His ‘One Guyana’ vision has certainly provided the conceptual framework to take this nation of ours along the path of unity, peace and progress.