I AM never going to attack anyone’s gender or personal lifestyle as a well-respected Guyanese journalist, communications specialist and politician. I believe that everyone is entitled to an opinion and should express it freely without fear. I do, however, acknowledge everyone’s right to challenge or respond to that opinion freely with their facts, opinions, and information. I am never an aggressor or bully. I have learned over the years to fight with my words in order to protect my integrity. Decency, respect and class require me not to make myself that low.

Recently, I witnessed the entire exchange between the Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Sarah Browne-Shadeek, and the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) parliamentarians. I wondered if it was a movie that I was watching, because it seemed some of the WIN MPs were ganging up on the minister to try getting entry into the Amerindian Hostel in Georgetown.

At one point, the minister stood her ground as the other MPs present, namely Azruddin Mohamed, Odessa Primus, Dawn Hastings-Williams and Natasha Singh-Lewis hurled all sorts of insults and degrading things at her. They were attempting to bully the minister, but she did not allow it. There were others there who stood up to the WIN MPs and supporters. Interestingly, a journalist, Courdel Jones, attempted to get Mohamed and Primus to answer his questions about the incident, but was met with sheer hostility and vitriol from Primus.

I was shocked by this boldness and smoke for the government, minister and a journalist coming from newly minted MPs. This is not what I was accustomed to, especially given the circumstances. I took to social media and said that the WIN MPs, particularly Primus and Mohamed, were bullying the minister, and that their behaviour seemed classless. I said it is a manufactured controversy, and Primus and Mohamed were thugs in a political outfit.

Lo and behold, Primus responded publicly on her Facebook page. She went further by reposting a video of an encounter from nearly a decade ago involving another individual and me, seemingly to question my “class.” In doing so, she amplified attention towards me, directing thousands of followers, likes and hostile comments to my page. The Member of Parliament appeared visibly angry and made little effort to restrain the outburst or maintain composure.

So, let’s examine the situation. Firstly, I would say what I said to her face and for the entire world to hear. Mohamed and Primus are bullies looking for attention and media limelight. They do not have any sort of class, respect and decorum in this case. They are uneducated when it comes to politics and not having the political balls when compared to PNC, APNU and AFC. Yet, I am struggling to understand why and what people see in them, but I have to respect people’s choices.

I would never bully Primus into accepting my opinion. Nor would I behave in such a classless manner, particularly if I were a sitting Member of Parliament representing the main opposition.

The truth is, Primus cannot take criticism, yet she uses her platform to bully, intimidate and start strife with so many people and politicians in society, from the First Lady, Minister Browne-Shadeek, to ordinary people.  She doesn’t know the meaning of service and temperament in politics. I would urge her to calm down and demonstrate that she can rise above criticisms from the public. I didn’t make her into a politician. Mohamed did, and she accepted.

So, she must demonstrate that she has time and place. I could have similarly attacked her, but I am not like that anymore. I realise that when a political opponent has no more arguments, they are backed against the wall and you have a point, they then decide to get personal and nasty like Primus. The people who supported WIN deserve a more sober and better quality of representation from Primus and Mohamed. She has to behave as a parliamentarian and not a comedian, because nobody is laughing with you but at you. And, if you ask me, it’s not funny.

This is the last time I am going to address this video. I am not the same person who would have cussed Primus out. Times have changed, and Michael Younge has evolved. Primus would best consider herself lucky. I am not for the weak of heart, and the beast in me is sleeping; it is not dead. So, Primus must not play with me; she has a lot of other, bigger politicians to duel with.

Secondly, their attack on the Amerindian Affairs Minister and her ministry is vile, nasty and wicked. She is a newly minted young minister who should have been given the grace to remedy the situation, if there was a complaint. Primus and Mohamed should not be seen bullying a minister because when pressure knocks their MPs, they are quick to cry out. They should request a meeting with the minister with the intention of bringing the ongoing emergencies to the minister’s attention. They should discuss with her and the government if they were concerned about Amerindians, human rights and basic dignity. They could have chosen other alternatives. They chose the last option at this point and time in this festive season, to protest and make a scene.

Thirdly, the WIN party is classless because it doesn’t speak for thousands of other Amerindian people who utilise the service of the hostel. Those people are grateful for life-saving and highly effective access to government services over the years, even if it means facing a little discomfort in the meantime. I personally know of countless Amerindian people who have no problem with the service they receive when they venture to Georgetown. They laud the free-of-cost interventions put in place by the government.

Soon, a new building with much more staff and services will house the Amerindian Hostel and all services that are currently being offered. And, Hastings-Williams misled the WIN party and is useless as a representative of the Amerindian people. What she and others should be fighting for, they are not fighting for. Amerindian communities need support from WIN to get the lands titled and ownership of the lands settled. They need more development and more money to address their needs in terms of innovation, education and skills training. That is what WIN should be following, not seeking to manufacture controversy and engaging in opportunistic politics where it seems easy.

Finally, we need to urgently sort out a code of conduct for our opposition members. Everything is not representation, and being a bully is not equal to activism. Putting your hands up and cussing out a new minister is not activism or normal behaviour. Behaving so loudly and bravely means nothing at the end of the day if you can’t resolve anything for the Amerindian people.

Parliamentarians are held to a higher standard than public officials. They must have decency and class. They must possess restraint and rationalise their actions both on and off their social media. They must work for the people, but always know their place. If Primus and the WIN party do not want smoke, they must not start the fire.

DISCLAIMER: The views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Guyana National Newspapers Limited.