Dear Editor,
HOW quickly the lines from Matthew Arnold’s, “Sohrab and Rustum” unfold, to remind us of lent, confession, revelation, reflection and conscience:
“Man, who art thou who dost deny my words?

Truth sits upon the lips of dying men,
And falsehood, while I lived, was far from mine.”

As some bask in their golden and silver ages, others in their youthful days remain aghast and gasp to learn the true history of Guyana and the turmoil Burnham and his merry gang of conspirators put Guyana through, forcing those not bearing party cards, along also with their own regretful card holders, to flee this country, escape hardship, avoid being used and abused and seek refuge and greener pastures overseas.

The overseas barrel became the pillar of support and receiving a remittance became a pillow of comfort. Guyana was governed with the advent of oppression, suppression and depression through the instrumentality of divide and rule from the onset of the “Kabacca.”

The PNC rigged elections to stay in power, unleashed violence to subdue the opposition and their supporters, their kit and kin burned homes and buildings, looted stores, murdered the innocent, robbed and stole with their “kick down door” method, tortured the lives of Guyanese, mismanaged the economy, bankrupt the nation, making Guyana the poorest nation next to Haiti in the Caribbean.

The also created food and employment shortages, introduced Guy-lines, froze wage increases, engineered loopholes for their cronies to take advantage of and dip their hands into the kitty, practice prejudice and victimisation, padded the Public Service with “one of their own,” while, the PNC loyalists lived the ‘good life’ and the small man never became the real man!

The PNC call for “Slo Fyaah, Moe Fyaah,” demanded a regulatory infusion of premeditated disruption, interruption and confusion in different size, shape and colour and from variable sources.

All these undermining elements were utilised and factored into creating mayhem and destabilisation and provided the foundation to make the country ungovernable when not in power. Propaganda was always used as the cheapest tool to fool their followers and feed them the diatribe Kool-Aid.

Backed by the co-operation of fellow Caribbean heads of government, Burnham and his PNC successors were seen as sharing a common ideal. Corruption injected a cohesiveness so that record keeping was not a priority in order to stall the work of auditors.

With the network of the army, police force, people’s militia and the National Service, the country was cocooned with military protection which provided the safety and security for the dictatorship. Not until fair and free election prevailed in 1992, was democracy restored through the courtesy of the Carter/American intervention.

Dead men tell no tale and the deaths of Vincent Teekah, Shirley Field-Ridley, Father Darke and Walter Rodney will reveal the callousness of the murderers and unmask the intellectual perpetrators who designed their demise and survived to live with a guilty conscience while hiding behind floral intonation, teaching philosophy, quoting from scripture and preaching morality!

Those who soiled their hands and couldn’t run a “cake-shop,” now want to run a country! The absurdity of hypocrisy is an unfeatured item on the agenda of those who insinuate the call to arms and ferment violence in their disguised language. Then again, the word ‘shame’ is a comfortable truth and is worn around the necks of PNC, displaying a sense of pride.

“Turning the gun in the right direction” is a call for “flogging a dead horse.” The army and police force are headed by distinguished men and women whose loyalty are unquestionable as their allegiance is towards the safety, security and protection of Guyana and Guyanese first and foremost.

Their judgement is premised with equality and laced with justice. Law and order will be sustained and rules and regulations will be observed. The current military force is a “sea shell” for peace-loving Guyanese. The days of yore daunted with indiscipline and obeying the wrong command are in the past and they do not form the present and will not provide for “more of the same” in the future.

President Ali’s theme, “One Guyana,” is the catalyst which will mold this nation so that Guyana’s Motto, “One People, One Nation, One Destiny,” will evidently manifest to harness Guyanese of all races, colors, cultures, sects, sexes and societies.

This will pave the path of peace, progress and prosperity and provide the advancement and development of a modern and structured country. Those who fan the fire of hate, violence and race will eventually lose to a generation of radical thinkers who can configure reality from illusion.

Guyanese will no longer respond to the temptation of evil doers nor will they listen to the “Pied Piper” who wants to lead them down the valley of doom and gloom.

The future of Guyana is cradled in the safe hands of the PPP/C Government. Daily, Guyanese at home and abroad are joining President Ali’s bandwagon. More visitors are longing to explore the beauty of this country.

International investors are lining up to be part and parcel of Guyana’s exciting development. The members from the PNC Party are crossing the floor. The PNC Party is shivering with fear and worrying.

The international community is supportive of President Ali and will not back election riggers. This is a formula for disaster for the Opposition. The PNC can never be winners but losers because they can no longer rig any election!
Yours respectfully,
Jai Lall