The Observer
The debate over the past few weeks between Dr Randy Persaud and some other newspaper letter writers and bloggers is indeed interesting. What is obvious is that some who have taken the time to try to counter Randy’s position have been overcome by their political sentiments and have degenerated into vile personal attacks on the Doctor. The debate, despite the nastiness by some, is the strongest indicator that Guyana is a democratic State. Those who tirelessly try daily to perpetuate the opposite are not dissimilar to the proverbial ostrich with its head in the sand.

It is no secret that Randy’s position reflects the progress Guyana has made over the last seventeen years under the PPP administration. Similarly, his opponents’ position is that of a few who, like the Opposition, would always want others to believe that no progress was made. The position of any Opposition would rarely change in any government despite numerous beneficial changes implemented by the sitting administration. Guyana is no different. It is understood that the Opposition will oppose. Democracy promotes this given right to so oppose.

Some who profess to not being an official part of the Opposition, as in the case of Randy’s opponents, cannot, by their contemptible writings and known association, mask their allegiance to factions within the opposing parties. This, as evident by the personal attacks on the Doctor, is in synchrony with the dictate of their political benefactor in the Opposition. Over the years, some under the guise of being columnists have been championing the Opposition’s cause.

Only last week a columnist from the Kaieteur News, whose tirades border on sedition, was seen in a picket line with known anti-government activists. This is not only a further demonstration of the vibrant democracy here, but emphasises what is already known; this particular columnist has become the spokesperson for the Opposition. It is therefore wishful thinking for such a person and his cohorts, who have resorted to assassinate Randy’s character, to postulate differently from what is being propagated by his political masters in the Opposition.

These writers who have degenerated into gross indecency in public debate have deliberately absolved themselves from the issue and have become immersed in character assassination. Randy did not theorise when he stated that Guyana has indeed been transformed over the last seventeen years. He stated facts. Much has been written about the multitude of developments within all sectors over this period. Any person residing here for the last seventeen years and who would have experienced what obtained under the last administration, can attest to the leaps and bounds Guyana has made since.

Those who left prior to the dawn of this new era and have returned over the last few years, are in awe at the rapid and sustained development this once bankrupt country has undergone. Many of the things that are now considered as routine were unheard of within the previous administration and would have been a luxury had it been available. Something as simple as an e-mail, which the mud-slingers use to send their poisonous writings to blogs and newspapers, would have sounded preposterous under Burnham and Hoyte, despite computer technology permeating elsewhere.

The advances alone in communication and information technology exemplify the transformation Guyana has seen. Cell phones and easy overseas communications further advance this point. Vehicle imports and personal acquisition of same are other areas in which this country’s development can be gauged. Hundreds of miles of roads which were built or refurbished, have become inadequate in facilitating the vast and growing number of vehicles. An average of a thousand are being registered every month! Traffic has become a nightmare. Mind you, seventeen years is not, by any stretch of the imagination, a long period.

Further, the development seen is within a contracted period given that this administration had to battle with a bankrupt nation during its first few years in Office. Countries which achieved democratic status long before Guyana are yet to experience the astounding development seen here. These are facts. What is ironic and even laughable is that all of those who publicly castigate this administration and who have now focused their venom on Randy have experienced vast increases in their personal wealth and now live far more comfortably than the period prior to 1992!

Take the newspaper columnist referred to above. He has a posh house in an expensive residential area. He drives an expensive sport utility vehicle which type was not imported before 1992. Yet, everyday he spews hatred and inaccuracies in the public domain and has the temerity to accuse this administration of not achieving anything. He shamelessly claims that Guyana hasn’t moved forward. His life has improved. It couldn’t under the last administration. The conditions then weren’t conducive to personal advancement. Today, thousands have improved their standard of living and have acquired wealth due to the prudent management of the government and its commitment to the people of Guyana. Just look at the tremendous advancement in the housing sector.

This same columnist harps daily about an elected dictatorship; yet his seditious tirades are published unimpeded. He could not have contemplated this during the brutal regime of the last administration. His cohorts are no different. They have all acquired wealth and live luxurious lives. The former treason accused drives around in a few vehicles which attract astronomical costs. He lives in extreme comfort; yet he accuses this administration in the same way as the columnist. A trade unionist who is part of this group lives in a palatial residence and, just like the other two, accuses government of not fostering development.

These three and all of the known letter writers and bloggers live and enjoy comfortable and luxurious lives. How is it that with their own advancement and that of their families and friends, they shamelessly accuse Randy of presenting a fallacy with regards to Guyana’s development?

Is it that, just like the mandate of the Opposition, they have to oppose? Or is it the brazen display of hypocritical demeanour? The fact that they have resorted to assassinate Randy’s good name is evidence that they cannot sustain a decent and professional debate on Guyana’s profound development seen within the last seventeen years.

The evidence of such development is overwhelming. Given their own dramatic advancement and their unethical and despicable attacks on Randy, one could only conclude that their position taken is not dissimilar to that of hypocrites. Guyana has always been touted as a paradise in terms of its hospitable people, landscape, and climate, and as a model for the developing world. What Randy is doing through his writings and its subsequent responses is to unearth a number of hypocrites in a paradise.
Don’t be distracted Randy; you have exposed them all.