By Leonard Craig

ROBESON Benn, David Patterson and one reason why Jagdeo is unequalled in Guyanese politics

RECENTLY the sod was turned to rebuild the burnt-out Brickdam Police Station and Divisional Headquarters of the ‘A’ Division. It is slated to be a 12-storey tower that is expected to bring the police force closer to the 21st century. I credit this to the vision of Minister Robeson Benn.

The very day following the fire, Benn said he will work towards constructing a multi-storey edifice. I have a strong interest in our built environment and believe that in this emerging oil economy, government must be a pacesetter and major contributor to the architectural beauty of a country.

I was disappointed many times in the past with respect to the lack of vision and architectural inventiveness in officials who held high political office. Two examples readily come to mind: one, back in 2009 when the Ministry of Health building in upper Brickdam was torched; the then Minister of Health Leslie Ramsammy presented a picture that suggested enemies of the state set the fire to spite the government. He waxed lyrical that like the proverbial Phoenix, the ministry will rise from the ashes. Ramsammy then presided over the rebuilding of a two-floor building the size of an average two/three-bedroom single-family house.

I was personally livid at the lack of vision. My philosophy was, if you are up against forces that want to see you down, you have to show them that you can come bigger and better.

Two, the Timehri International Airport. I was overseas for a few years and observed glorification of the development and modernisation of the airport. When I came home in late 2019, I was appalled and underwhelmed that a major airport completely rebuilt would end up looking like a bus terminus with air bridges. I then lost a lot of confidence in David Patterson’s capacity to be transformative or inventive.

Next, I watched last Wednesday’s edition of the Gildharie-Kissoon Show; former Public Infrastructure Minister David Patterson was the guest. Freddie asked Patterson if the AFC would consider a coalition with the PPP/C. Even though he said that the question is best directed to his party, he went on to make the issue personal. He said that for him, personally, he would never contemplate such an event because the PPP/C’s attacks on him cut too deeply. Freddie further probed whether Patterson had the capacity to put that in the past and move on; he said no.
That moment helped to cement for me why VP Bharrat Jagdeo is unequalled and unrivalled in contemporary Guyanese politics. I have heard many comments about Jagdeo being intolerant, unforgiving and unwilling to mend political bridges. Because of the relentless attacks on Jagdeo, one would get the impression that he is the poster child, the actual definition of intolerance and political unforgiveness, but the public record betrays this narrative.

Richard Van West Charles, Joe Hamilton, Carl Greenidge, Gillian Burton, Odinga Lumumba, Phillip Bynoe, Sasenarine Singh and Patricia Chase-Green, are just a few names of persons who were vehemently and poisonously opposed to Jagdeo and the PPP/C and yet were able to, over the years, establish an extremely close working relation with the VP and the party he leads.
The position taken by Patterson is held more deeply by many politicians in the opposition. Their unwillingness to even consider working with a person who, in the course of the practice of politics, caused them to be the recipient of heavy political flack. This is one major reason why the AFC will never regain its dominant third-party status; it harbours too many petty politicians. This is a trait that runs through the opposition like a golden thread.

The Granger administration exacted political revenge even on known stalwarts and hard-working party members who rubbed senior leaders the wrong way. Granger himself led the thin-skinned gang. This is also why APNU cannot present the strongest possible opposition or regain government, too many exiled political stalwarts over petty ego trips.

No one was as deep in Jagdeo’s bad-book as Freddie Kissoon. Freddie wrote no less that 1,000 negative articles and letters on Jagdeo and his party, including a coarse and unflattering academic review of his presidency. Freddie also attached many personal negative labels to Jagdeo and vowed to condemn him to the dustbins of history. Freddie even stood against Jagdeo in court, which turned out to be one of the most widely reported and closely followed court cases involving a person to have held the office of President. I’m sure the cumulation of these events were personally offensive and embarrassing to Jagdeo. Despite the deep history of bad blood, Freddie writes a daily column for the Guyana Chronicle. This could not be possible without personal sanction from Jagdeo.

This is one reason why Jagdeo is set apart from all others: he understands that there are no permanent enemies in politics, political expedience trumps personality opprobrium. Politics is a numbers game, and no politician worth his weight in salt will take positions set to isolate and reduce body count. Despite the vitriol, Jagdeo has the winning personality and will never be upstaged by any of the current political pretenders, even after he draws his last breath.