THERE comes a time when one has to see the bigger picture as a citizen of Guyana. One of the big pictures is that Guyana comes first, where Venezuelan aggression heats up. This is the country of all of us, and it is more important than anything else. Partisan politics has to take a complete back seat when it comes to Venezuelan threats.
If we put anti-government feelings in front of the integrity of our country, then we should not be accepted as citizens of this nation. Some people did just that with the Mahdia arson that took 20 lives. The Usual Suspects wanted the 20 murder charges against the girl, who is alleged to have caused the death of 19 girls and one boy, to be withdrawn and a charge of arson be substituted. Lincoln Lewis, the forever head of the TUC, demanded that the 20 charges be withdrawn.
The anti-government zeal of these people caused them to oppose anything in Guyana because, for them, Guyana is the PPP and the PPP is Guyana. Recently, the central government has taken administrative control of 57 streets which the Georgetown City Council previously had administrative jurisdiction over.
The first thing to note is that the opposition parties, which are in the majority in the City Council, will reject the move. That is politics and any opposition will criticise government policies, whether bad or good. This is the nature of politics in every country on the globe. So, we should hardly focus on the attitude of the opposition parties, but look to see the reaction of the citizenry.
The first question to ask is what the government is going to do with these 57 streets. The answer is commonsensical. It will improve the physical use of these streets. There is a second answer. When these streets are improved, which section of the Republic will benefit from it? The answer is commonsensical. Guyana’s total population will benefit.
I use the new networks of roads in Region 4 and I do not see only PPP supporters with red T-shirts using them. I see the people of Guyana using them. I do not think only PPP members will be allowed free tuition at UG. All the applicants at UG, cutting across race and gender, can enter UG without a tuition burden.
Governments build infrastructural facilities for a nation, not party supporters. If you cannot see the bigger picture, then you are silly. The problem with the capital city of Georgetown for the past 40 years is that it has deteriorated terribly and modern Guyana has to do something about it.
A Georgetowner, not an opposition politician, has to be dishonest in giving the City Council a pass grade. It does not deserve any grade at all. Who is to be blamed? That is not the point. The story is that the City Council has not shown the capacity to and has not got the resources to resuscitate Georgetown to its glory days.
If a central government overflowing with resources can restore the glory of Georgetown, then by what logic can one reject that government intervention? Let’s move into the area of my expertise. I am an expert on the Georgetown seawall, having spent all my life visiting that place more often than any citizen the past 60 years.
The First Lady has architectured the Georgetown seawall from the bandstand right up to the Atlantic Ocean going west by Fort Groin. Go to that place at any hour from sunrise to midnight and the people of Guyana bask in the rehabilitation of the Georgetown seawall.
If the First Lady did not intervene, then the stink, “dutty” benches would have still been there and to take your pizza and sit on one of those benches would have been an invitation to be afflicted with a virus. Since the First Lady landscaped the seawall, I have not read even one line from anyone who has badmouthed the change. The answer is simple – it is a good thing that makes Guyana look good.
By contrast, go to the Promenade Garden. It is a disgrace. Please see my Wednesday, February 11, 2026, column captioned, “Disgrace: City Council, Republic Bank and Promenade Gardens.” Who has jurisdiction over this garden? It is the City Council. The Council does not have the money to preserve this iconic place. If the central government does not intervene, it will be lost to this generation and the next, and to think the iconic site sits right opposite the entrance to the State House. If the government decides to take control of Promenade Garden, then it has to be an act of lunacy on the part of any Guyanese to oppose it. Georgetown cries out for restoration. It must be restored to its pristine glory.
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.
