President tells Buxtonians…

– should not be seen as merely a building
THE long-cherished dream of Buxtonians that their Tipperary Hall will be restored will soon become a reality – another promise kept by President Bharrat Jagdeo.

The ground-breaking ceremony was held at the construction site in Buxton yesterday afternoon.

Lecturer in Sociology at UG, described by youthful Thashana Hiles as a community advocate, wife, mother, daughter and friend to all, MC Ms Barbara Thomas-Holder, expressed sincere appreciation and deep gratitude to President Jagdeo, commending him for his second appearance at Buxton within four months.

She noted that the importance of the occasion lay more in the groundbreaking task he was about to perform for the community, rather than in his presence.

She described the Tipperary Hall as a landmark and a premier venue in its time, having served, not only the residents of Buxton in its heyday, but also other communities along the East Coast corridor; also residents of Georgetown and Linden.

She recalled activities and occasions which she said would be forever etched in her memories, especially since her grandmother had responsibility for the food bar.

Ms Thomas-Holder also reminisced about the village elders, especially Prophet Wills and  Aunt Jess, mother of Tipperary Restoration Committee member Charles Booker, who celebrated her centenary birthday in 1998 with then President Janet Jagan in attendance.

When asked what her birthday wish was, she reportedly informed Mrs. Jagan that her birthday wish was to see Tipperary Hall rebuilt.

Ms Thomas-Holder reminded the audience that it was during this year that the old Tipperary Hall crashed to the ground, thus it is symbolic that thirteen years after this wish was made to a sitting President from the PPP, that it is today being realized by a President of the same Government.
She informed President Jagdeo that she will forever remember the significant role he has played in ensuring that the building is erected. She said the new structure, which will be built by Buxtonians, will reflect the endurance and strength evocative of the people of the community – standing tall and durable so that the people of Buxton can be proud of an artifact that is peculiarly Buxtonian.

She explained that the restored Tipperary Hall will not only be used for social occasions, but will also contain a resource unit for educational development, a computer and internet service, a reference library, a training and conference hall, among other empowerment initiatives. She urged Buxtonians to treasure the facility upon its completion.

Construction contractor, Mr. Charles Booker, who provided a brief history of the Tipperary restoration process explained that, although there had been continuous fundraising efforts in an attempt to restore the Hall, the magnitude of the undertaking was overwhelming and the task became too onerous. That is when fellow Buxtonian, Odinga Lumumba, was approached for assistance to kick-start the process.

He opined that the smiling faces in the audience were indicators that this was the right road on which to proceed with their restoration plans.

Rollo Younge outlined in brief the history of  Tipperary Hall, the original architect of which is unknown. He said the descendants of the slaves who bought the village and established the Hall were very fussy about the way they sent off their loved ones, which led to the establishment of the burial society.

He recalled the formative years of the People’s Progressive Party, when many important plans were made in the Tipperary Hall, and even subsequent to the split in the party when original PPP members, such as then Sydney King (now Eusi Kwayana), Martin Carter, and other famous political leaders opted at a meeting in the Tipperary Hall to remain with Dr. Cheddi Jagan’s faction of the PPP.

He said emotively, that Buxtonians have a symbiotic link with the founding leadership of the ruling party.

Explaining the Irish name of the Hall, Mr. Younge said that Tipperary was an Irish community known for its agricultural thrust, which was a vital enterprise in bygone days in Buxton, and which Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud is attempting to re-vitalize in the community.
Referring to the antipathy of those critical of the joint efforts of community members and the Government to restore Buxton to its glory days, Mr Younge declared the fundamental rights of all the citizens of the country, inclusive of Buxtonians to access state resources for developmental purposes. He stressed the need to relinquish the “manufacturers of discord” and embrace a path that would lead to economic and social development in the country.

According to Mr. Younge, since this collaborative effort has begun, he has witnessed a renaissance in the community and promised to return to California until after the transformation is completed and to continue to work assiduously to complete the restorative work in the community that is gathering continuous momentum.
He recalled a quotation in the May 1952 issue of the Thunder which stated: “As Buxton goes, so goes the country,” and said that the mainstream media at the time recognized that the community was perceptively recognized as the barometer for progress in the country.

EVERLASTING LEGACY

The belief then was that if Buxton was taken care of, then the rest of the country will follow. He said President Jagdeo will leave an everlasting legacy in the country and stressed that Buxton can, must, and will unite Guyana.
Mboya Wood and Odinga Lumumba outlined the processes leading to the President’s involvement in the restoration of the community, following which President Jagdeo was invited to the podium.
After expressing his pleasure at once again being able to visit the village, President Jagdeo stressed the importance of restoring the Tipperary Hall, which he said is not merely a building, but an important edifice in the psyche of successive generations of Buxtonians.
The President pointed out that the importance in the consciousness of Buxtonians for the restoration of the Hall is not merely for the sake of social activities, but because of its historic significance; as well as the fact that it could be traced that very important events had taken place at the Tipperary Hall, which were paramount to the evolution and growth of the community.

He said yesterday’s activity was not merely launching the process of reconstruction of a building, but of restoring part of the country’s proud history, and not just Buxtonian history, because the history of Buxton is about the history of Guyana.
The President stressed that respecting our shared history and restoring the institutions associated with the national patrimony would enable Guyanese to learn about what went wrong in the past and enlighten us as a people on the pathway to fixing extant problems in the nation.

Mr. Jagdeo also alluded to the role Buxton has played, as adumbrated by speakers before him, in the formation of the political class – from the time of the colonial masters, then Cheddi Jagan and Forbes Burnham, who both singly and collectively fought for dignity for Guyanese through an organized attempt to gain freedom for this nation. Speaking of events from the 1950’s to current times, sixty years hence, the President poignantly asked: “How did we lose the way?”

He answered his own question by recalling the years of the Cold War and the fear of Guyana’s relationship with Cuba and Fidel Castro, which the British and Americans were afraid would have triggered a domino effect on the geo-political landscape of South America, so they funded divisions and fomented internal strife to create rifts between the two major races in Guyana, which has triggered events that have caused much hurt and bitterness in this nation.

President Jagdeo stressed that this nation, although there should be pride in cultural and ancestral heritage, should recognize that there is a Guyanese patrimony bequeathed all of us by our collective ancestors through shared suffering and experiences.

He avowed the equal stature of Guyanese as comparable to any nation in the world and said that the uniting factor in the Guyanese people is that our heritage is from proud ancestors who hailed from the oldest and greatest civilizations in the world.

Alluding to the many accusations leveled against him by protagonists with agendas inimical to the unity in the land, President Jagdeo said that all through the traumatic years when Buxton was held hostage by criminal gangs he has consistently maintained that the country was failing the community and that Buxtonian children were witnessing things that no child should ever see.

The President said he grew up in a poor home in a village on the East Coast and, as boys, they rode on bicycles to neighbouring villages to play with other boys, asking:  “How can I generate hatred in the hearts of people with whom I grew up?”  He urged that the spirit of unity that prevailed in earlier years be rebuilt.  He reiterated that, although he contested the elections on a PPP platform, when he was elected Head-of-State he became President of Guyana and speaks on behalf of Guyanese, all of whom are his people, and not just PPP supporters, but the entire Guyanese nation.

Referrring to a request that he brings together the PPP and the PNC, the President says that he hopes that will happen in the future, although he has tried to do so unsuccessfully in the past, but promised that he will ensure that Mr. Corbin and the PNC leadership are all invited to the commissioning of the restored Tipperary Hall upon its restoration.

He said the money that is now accessible through debt reduction has been heavily invested in the human capital in the country and vowed to eradicate the stigma that dogs Buxtonians, especially when they are seeking employment.

However, he informed the audience that he has been encouraging members of the Private Sector to re-invest in the community, which will re-create employment opportunities within the community; also he urged that the attempts to open up the backlands for farming activities will not go in vain but that the enhanced opportunities will be optimally utilized.

After the conclusion of the formal ceremony, President Jagdeo was joined in turning the sod by his empowerment advisor, Odinga Lumumba and social activist Mboya Wood, both initiators of the train of events that fructified in this historic eventuality.