–Norton says of Ogunseye’s racist, inflammatory remarks; defends his ‘right to free speech’ despite widespread condemnation

LEADER of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), Aubrey Norton, on Thursday said he supports the freedom of speech of Working People’s Alliance (WPA) member, Tacuma Ogunseye, who received widespread backlash for making racially inflammatory and violently inciting remarks at a recent public meeting.

During his weekly virtual press conference, Norton finally broke his silence on the issue, but instead of condemning Ogunseye’s incendiary remarks, the Leader of the Opposition (LOO) would only say that he did not agree with Ogunseye’s choice of words.

According to Norton, attacking Ogunseye and the Opposition will not solve the problem.

“The Opposition believes that Mr. Tacuma Ogunseye’s right to free speech must be respected even though we believe that his language could have been better chosen. The choice of his language is his preserve,” Norton said.

Norton went on to further say: “Any attempt to use the law against Mr. Ogunseye will further erode the guardrails of democracy.”

Norton’s comments come days after fellow WPA executive member, David Hinds lashed out against Indo-Guyanese PNC/R members who had condemned the remarks made by Ogunseye, as well as those of fellow WPA member, Rhonda Layne. The comments were made at a public meeting held in Buxton last week Thursday.

According to Hinds, opposition members condemning Ogunseye’s statements, regardless of its veracity, is akin to delivering opposition prisoners to the “enemy” in light of some having suggested that the remarks by Ogunseye constituted criminal offences.

In a statement, Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affair, Anil Nandlall, S.C., issued a statement on the situation, noting that Ogunseye’s call for public disorder and resistance, is capable of amounting to several criminal offences, including but not limited to, sedition, seditious libel, inciting riotous behaviour and exciting racial hostility in order to create a breakdown of law and order within the State of Guyana, if not treason.

Norton’s take on the comments made by Ogunseye and Layne, however was not shared by several members of his party, who issued statements condemning the situation.

Members of Parliament Ganesh Mahipaul, Natasha Singh-Lewis, and Geeta Chandan-Edmond as well as Region Four Regional Chairman Daniel Seeram and Mayor of Georgetown Ubraj Narine, all PNC/R members, denounced the remarks made by Ogunseye and Layne as derogatory and distasteful.

“We wish to condemn the speaker’s remarks where it referred to East Indians coming from the slums of India and living in deplorable places like pipes. These remarks further insinuated that the alleged conditions under which East Indians lived in India made them undeserving of lands in Guyana,” a joint statement from Mahipaul, Singh-Lewis, Seeram and Narine had said.

Chandan-Edmond, a former PNC/R General Secretary, had issued a separate statement publicly disassociating herself from the inflammatory remarks and calling for responsible action and commentaries from politicians, civil society and activists alike.

The racially inciting remarks by an opposition member comes just months after Norton was accused of turning a blind eye to the constant racial hostility faced by Indo-Guyanese within his party.

In January, PNC/R Treasurer, Faaiz Mursaline, wrote the party’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) a damning letter outlining racial hostility, and financial impropriety. Mursaline’s comments followed rumors suggesting it was the very racial hostility that led to Chandan-Edmond resigning as General Secretary less than a year after being appointed to the position.

Questioned about his concerns of how these continued occurrences of racially divisive incidents within his party is affecting the PNC/R’s ability to appeal to the Indo-Guyanese voters, Norton dismissed the situations as not having any effect on the party.