THE main political Opposition is playing a dangerous game following the horrific deaths of 20 children in a fire that was deliberately set to the female dorms of the Madhia Secondary School in Region Eight.
On one hand, the APNU and AFC politicians are seen expressing sympathies to the families and saying that they mourn the loss of the children, while the same or usual opposition political suspects have started a wild and very brutish campaign aimed at taking down certain PPP/C Government Ministers and Regional Officials that they say must be held accountable for the fiery deaths.

The Leader of the Opposition, Aubrey Norton then went to Madhia where he engaged in dirty and trench-like politics with other party officials there about the tragedy.
As a result, snippets and video clips were taken to switch the narrative away from the families and victims of the fire to make it plain politics so that politicians like Amanza Walton-Desir, Natasha Singh-Lewis and Coretta McDonald could have relevance and five minutes of fame.
So irresponsible and inconsiderate is the APNU and AFC, which doubled down on the tragedy as Guyana showed signs of concern, worry, confusion, and bewilderment. The public wanted answers as to how the tragedy could have happened, and what steps would be taken to avoid any future repeat but they know they have to wait.
While Guyana still mourns the tragedy, the Opposition politicians are guilty of the inhumane politicisation of this tragedy. As its behaviour is becoming clear for all to see, the APNU and the AFC can no longer hide the reality that it is pining away internally and therefore clutching at straws when it comes to playing the blame game with this tragedy.
Firstly, the families of the fire victims deserve the time and space to grieve their loved ones. They do not need platitudes from Norton and his politicians. They need the support and other services which the PPP/C Government, to their credit, has been providing to them to make it through this difficult time because it is not easy losing a loved one, and certainly not in such a manner.

They, however, would more appreciate it if they felt that Guyana was mourning with them and was supportive. Most of Guyana mourned while the opposition kept doing their interviews, overseas media appearances and PR tours attacking the Government left, right, and centre as though this deadly disaster was the government’s doing directly or there was some commotion about how the Government responded at the moment.
The fact is, President Dr Irfaan Ali responded immediately and the Ministers of Education, Home Affairs, Health and Amerindian Affairs followed suit. Every possible thing that could have been done was done and is being done to deal with the tragedy so the opposition is engaging in premature political mud-slinging. It is dangerous and disrespectful to say it politely.
Secondly, it appears as if the Madhia school fire is following a pattern of arson with a hint of mystery.

Recall, on September 14, 2011, the Wismar Christiansburg Secondary School was gutted by fire. Then, the One Mile Primary School at Wismar, Linden on August 13, 2012, went up in flames followed by the mysterious fire on June 20, 2021 that destroyed a section of the North Ruimveldt Multilateral School in Georgetown.
Fast track to the Mabaruma Secondary School, which was completely destroyed by fire on September 24 and the July 21, 2022 fire ravaged St. George’s High School. Also, 0n January 13, 2023, a fire gutted Christ Church Secondary School while the St Angela’s Girls Dormitory at Karasabai went up in flames just three days ago.
One thing all of these fires have in common, according to the Guyana Fire Service, they were all acts of arson or deliberately set. They all occurred in the wee hours or had similar features.
One would be left to think who would benefit from the destruction of these schools, the chaos in the country and the political consequences that would follow. One hint is not the President nor the PPP/C Government. Someone wants to send a message and this stinks of possible or alleged opposition political involvement.
Maybe that would explain the disrespectful and immoral prompt response of PNC/APNU politicians to the fires in general.

Do they have an invisible hand in the fires? Are they pulling the strings of arsonists?
Do they want to rile up their support base much like they had accomplished with their ‘Mo fire, slow fire’ campaign back in the early 2000s?
There are more questions than there are answers and Congress Place must know that the fires are being looked at because they have striking similarities to what an irresponsible, visionless, desperate political party would do to change public perception of the government so close to an election.
Thirdly, the Commission of Inquiry (CoI), which President Ali hinted, should not only launch a thorough investigation into the Mahdia School Dormitory fire, it should also investigate the allegation of neglect and non-action in the region to the recommendations of fire service before the fire.
It should not stop there. It should be extended to all school fires that occurred since the PPP/C came to power in August 2020 because this is having a terrible and irreparable impact on the education sector and the welfare of our children.
It must examine also the building codes and safety regulations at schools in general, and all government measures in place at dormitories in the length and breadth of Guyana. Heads must roll, and people must be sanctioned and disciplined if needs be at every level.