Dear Editor,
I WRITE to register my disappointment with the advice provided by Dr Vivian Williams. Though Dr Williams is no doubt well-qualified, it appears as if the press considers him some kind of a wizard because he is, as we are always reminded, a “New York-based lawyer.”
It is not that what the “New York-based lawyer” is saying is incorrect. The issue is that literally everything he points out has been widely acknowledged, discussed, analysed, and received sustained attention not only by the Ali administration, but also by the opposition. Civil society actors in Guyana discuss phenomena such as “Dutch Disease” and “Resource Curse” on a daily basis.
Since the advice offered by Dr Williams is basically everyday knowledge in Guyana, I won’t bother giving them any analytical attention. This notwithstanding, the “New York-based lawyer’s” comments on agriculture do deserve a sentence or two.
Dr Williams seems to be completely oblivious that Guyana’s LCDS 2030 economic strategy is specifically geared towards food security, not only for Guyana, but also for the entire Caribbean. Dr Williams does not appear to know that the Minister of Agriculture has been on direct participatory outreaches to every major agricultural region in Guyana. Minister Mustapha and his well-qualified staff, including engineers, agronomists, marketing specialists, and the like, engage the full spectrum of issues facing the agricultural communities.
Some of Dr Williams’ observations on the 2020 Regional and National elections could only be considered banal. For instance, he seems to be shocked that “…each side [no doubt meaning PPP/C and APNU+AFC] was like, ‘we can’t lose this.” He ruminates that “…the country will now be in a perpetual electoral contest.” Well, as everyone knows, in democratic societies, all political parties go to the polls with the attitude “we can’t lose this.” As for the “perpetual electoral contest,” I must remind Dr Williams that he is in a country where the election cycle never stops.
The most alarming and alarmist of the “NY-based Attorney-at-Law” concerns his ‘prediction’ that “…one can expect to see signs from political actors using all sort [sic] of mechanisms to dominate and wipe out their opponents.” Dr Williams should be cautioned that this kind of speech act is extremely dangerous. This is the kind of language associated with hate speech, and though not advocated by Dr Williams, simply introducing the words into the political lexicon is tantamount to political irresponsibility. I call on Dr Williams to withdraw these words, namely, “wipe out their opponents” (quoted in Kaieteur News, October 20, 2022, p. 03). What Dr Williams might not know is that political advocacy often takes the form of ‘predictions. Among other places, it happened in person on Brickdam Street during the 2020 elections.

Yours sincerely,
Dr Randy Persaud