START AT THE TOP

Written by Ralph Ramkarran
Saturday, 16th January 2016, 9:00 pm

‘Arrogance and complacency cost the PPP last year’s elections,’ screamed the headline in Stabroek News of January 1, reporting on the year-end press conference of former President Bharrat Jagdeo, now Leader of the Opposition. He is reported to have said that ‘there was a severe disconnect between the party and its supporters on the ground’ resulting in APNU and AFC ‘gaining footholds among PPP supporters.’ He attributed this to the PPP’s complacency and arrogance and vowed to work hard to strengthen the party by going ‘house to house to people right across this country and rebuilding a connection between them and the party.’ Mr. Jagdeo spoke about the youth being enticed by the coalition because they lacked knowledge of the PNC’s past and the need for the party to work ‘vigorously to incubate a new generation of youthful leaders.’

The single-minded support by Mr. Jagdeo of Mr. Donald Ramotar as the presidential candidate in 2011 was one of the worst displays of contempt and political arrogance in Guyana’s political history. The compelling obsession to continue to exercise governmental authority and control was the sole motivating factor. The PPP leadership, in thrall to Mr. Jagdeo, mistakenly felt that its supporters would accept anything thrown at them.

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CONSULTATION

Written by Ralph Ramkarran
Saturday, 9th January 2016, 9:00 pm

The implementation of the process of consultation required of the President under Guyana’s Constitution has been one of the most controversial constitutional issues since Independence. During the later years of President Burnham’s rule, consultation had degenerated into a perfunctory telephone call to the then Leader of the Minority. After 1985 when President Hoyte assumed office, consultation improved but still consisted of only a meeting at which names were proposed for constitutional offices to which the Leader of the Minority was given the opportunity to accept or reject there and then. This pattern has continued until the present.

Consultation in the most basic circumstances, even in family matters, could never mean less than a process of discourse, an exchange of ideas, consideration by one partner of the views of the other, underlined by the possibility that the position which one or both partners held on entering the discussion could be changed. In matters of national importance under the Constitution, consultation was never allowed to reach even this modest threshold.

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AFTER FIFTY YEARS, TIME TO REMOVE THE OBSTACLE

Written by Ralph Ramkarran
Saturday, 2nd January 2016, 9:00 pm

A large number of observers of varying views believe that the single most important obstacle to progress in Guyana over the past fifty years and before has been the expression of ethnic division in organized political form and the failure to find a resolution to this dilemma by way of a constitutional or any other form of modus vivendi. There is as yet no convincing indication that there is a national commitment that this matter will take centre stage this year, even though constitutional reform has been promised.

Already, however, President Granger, whose party presided over the granting of Independence in 1966 and now presides over the celebration of its fiftieth anniversary, has commenced the event with his party’s well known, politically divisive, narrative about entering 1966 under a state of emergency. This can, but hopefully will not, set the tone for the celebrations of the fiftieth independence anniversary. The narrative that his party brought peace to Guyana from 1964 when it assumed office attracts the counter-narrative that it is those who created the violence that brought it to an end, leading to a one-sided celebration of the anniversary. Let us hope that this will not happen.

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PROSPECTS FOR THE NEW YEAR

Written by Ralph Ramkarran
Saturday, 26th December 2015, 9:00 pm

The major concern for most Guyanese for the New Year is likely to be their economic wellbeing and the progress being made towards improvement of conditions for them and their families. 2015 resonated with excitement for supporters of APNU+AFC with the election of a new government after a decade and a half of corruption, arrogance and vindictiveness. Now that the dust is settling, eyes are being turned towards the promise of the ‘good life,’ which has not yet materialized. As one of my firm’s APNU supporting staff members told me a week ago without being prompted, reflecting a growing sentiment: “But, senior, I’m no better off. Things still bad.” And this is not for want of a far higher than average city salary.

Guyana’s economy should take centre stage early in the new year and this is not time for half measures. In what would be our fiftieth year of independence in a few days, the economy is structurally the same as it was when we attained independence. We are still a commodity producer with the same products dominating our economic landscape. In broad perspective, the only differences are that gold has replaced bauxite as one of the three pillars, along with rice and sugar, the export of logs has increased and the construction industry has grown.

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THE SEASON OF GOODWILL

Written by Ralph Ramkarran
Saturday, 19th December 2015, 9:00 pm

The Christmas season, referred to as the season of goodwill, will see Guyanese of all religious persuasions seizing the opportunity of participating in all that the season has to offer. They delight in the exchange of gifts, pamper the children and enjoy family gatherings. Some try to bring cheer to the less fortunate. Many Christians take the opportunity of reaffirming their faith, to give thanks and to celebrate the life and work of Jesus Christ. All participate in the fanfare of welcoming the New Year. Some consume too much alcohol and drive recklessly.

In this period religion plays an important, sometimes a dominant, role in the lives of many people in Guyana and around the world. Christians engage in religious observances and reflect on the lessons that Jesus in His short time on earth left with us. Different people are moved or motivated by particular aspects of the teachings of Jesus, depending on their special interests. Jesus’s clear, outspoken and uninhibited partisanship towards the poor, oppressed, disadvantaged and sick are what appeal most to me.

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The Conversation Tree is both physical and philosophical. The physical is the tree itself, which has given its name to the road from which it originates at the intersection of the Rupert Craig Highway. It was reputedly first planted by Napleton William King in 1876 to celebrate the birth of his son Napleton Walter. As...
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