THREE of the remaining WPA stalwarts – Clive Thomas, David Hinds and Tacuma Ogunseye – have for years now used the village of Buxton to varnish their politics of anti-PPPism. Once there is a discussion about the existence of African-Guyanese, Buxton is the place they turn to seek converts.

Every Emancipation Day, there is a public meeting on the African Guyanese economy, held not in Agricola or Dem Amstel or Bagstown but in Buxton. In 2022, an emancipation programme named, “Buxton Black is Beautiful Emancipation Day” was held. The two main speakers were persons whose parties held state power between 2015 and 2020. Both were African Guyanese: One from the WPA, the other from the AFC.

Buxtonians were subtly advised to confront the government on oil wealth. The AFC participant told Buxtonians that they must force the PPP to come to the table. The other person from the WPA shouted to Buxtonians that they must “bruk up” the table’s legs if in the discussion they don’t get oil money. For my analysis on this Buxton bravado, Google my column of August 4, 2022 titled, “Black People must demand answers for five years of betrayal.”

This year was no exception, Buxtonians were sermonized again. In 2018, Clive Thomas went to Buxton and informed his attendees on Emancipation Day that the government should offer cash grants to citizens from oil revenues. The audience applauded him vociferously. Thomas subsequently named his speech, “The Buxton proposal.”

All persons who advocate this position refer to it as cash grants from oil revenue. Thomas is the only person that calls it the Buxton proposal. Why? His motive was intentional and deliberate. The answer is simple – to galvanize the people of Buxton. The people of Buxton owe it to themselves and their children to have a serious soul-searching session with Thomas, Hinds, Ogunseye.

Since Buxtonians have been the recipients of the relentless advocacy of this WPA triumvirate since the PPP returned to power in 2020, Buxtonians need to have answers from these three men as to the role of the WPA in government from 2015-2020.

Why it is necessary for Buxtonians to make these enquiries is because of the barefaced avoidance of these WPA persons to account for their time in power. They owe it to Buxtonians that they are constantly preaching to about confronting the PPP government, to be honest about them as to what they did and wanted to do and couldn’t do when the WPA held power.

The dialogue does not have to be an intemperate one. For the Buxtonians, it should be a learning experience. In the most inviting ambience, they should put their questions to the three men and when the answers are given, Guyana’s historiography will be made richer.

I implore the people of Buxton to call a meeting with Thomas, Hinds and Ogunseye and ask them questions that all Guyanese are eager to hear. The answers are of utmost historical importance. Let’s take some samples. What was the attitude of WPA when it found out that, in 2016, the government bench had shelved the amendment to the anti-narcotic legislation to make the penalty for small amount of marijuana less harsh? Did Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine and Clive Thomas remonstrate with the PNC leadership over this terrible lapse?

There is nothing wrong with any government in Guyana paying $3 million in monthly rent to a family to house a government office. But Aubrey Retemyer, the deputy to Clive Thomas at the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) said on the Freddie Kissoon-Gildarie Show that he suggested that the government renovate an unused section of the doctors’ residence on Quamina Street to house SARA instead of paying that huge rent but it was rejected. This is the same Thomas that paid $3 million monthly to a rich Indian family but goes to Buxton to talk about African consciousness.

In the APNU+AFC government, Clive Thomas was chairman of GuySuCo. Even if Thomas was in agreement with the closure of the Berbice estates for reasons of no financial return to the state by the sugar industry, how could people of the historical calibre of Thomas and Roopnaraine have sat in the government and accepted that legal, financial compensation was withheld. Thomas had to know about this because it was a decision of the corporation he was head of.

Did the WPA, when in government, know that after the closure of the estates, the former sugar workers were charged $500 to fish in the estate ponds then, they were stopped? The people of Buxton should no longer allow WPA personnel to use them. They need to ask Thomas, Hinds and Ogunseye to account for their time in government. To refuse to do so is an act of human indecency.