Conversation Tree

PROSPECTS FOR THE NEW YEAR

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

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 STORY OF THE LONG LOST SWIZZLE

(Kamal Ramkarran is the author of the original and longer version of this 2009 article, which has been abridged and amended by me with his permission).

The swizzle is Guyana’s long lost, but once favourite, alcoholic beverage. Even though it was synonymous with Demerara and had enjoyed worldwide fame, it is now almost unknown in the country which gave it birth. In the 1800s and up to the mid 1900s, the drinking of swizzles was an established custom, even passion, among Demerara’s upper strata. It became the preferred cocktail of the day, long before the combination of rum and coke was ever discovered.

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Chronicle apologises to Ramkarran

The Chair, Board of Directors and Editor-in-Chief of Guyana National Newspapers Limited and the Guyana Chronicle unequivocally apologise to Mr Hari Narayen Ralph Ramkarran for two specific instances of libel against him as well as Chronicle’s role in what was indisputably a politically directed campaign of which he was the target.Mr Ramkarran, Senior Counsel and a former Speaker of the National Assembly, is a citizen whose outstanding reputation precedes him. The first libel was contained in an article dated the 2013-07-24 in which the Chronicle alleged that Mr Ramkarran had been involved in some unspecified way in the disappearance of funds belonging to the estate of Yusuf Mongroo, deceased, from a bank in the Cayman Islands.

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TOUTING AND THE LEGAL PROFESSION

It was disclosed during last week (“Bar Association writes Registrar of Court, Commissioner of Police on touting” SN 2/12/15) that the Guyana Bar Association had written to the Registrar of the Supreme Court and the Commissioner of Police seeking action against the use of touts to procure legal business for lawyers. Touting has long been an offence under the Legal Practitioner Act. The Police made one attempt to stamp out the practice shortly after the legislation was passed when John Leonard was charged for touting as a result of a police trap. In 1971 the Court of Appeal set aside the conviction of Leonard who was represented by the legendary J.O.F Haynes. Since then the Police have done nothing to stamp out the practice, presumably because of the virtual impossibility of obtaining evidence of and a conviction for touting other than by entrapment which was the method used as the basis of the charge against Leonard, which the Court of Appeal rejected. Touting flourishes also because of some members of the legal profession benefit from it.

For those who are unfamiliar with the practice of touting and have never had to walk the upper portion of Croal Street and Avenue of the Republic or Charlotte and King Streets and their environs in search of a lawyer, an attempt to do so will result in an approach by one or more persons inquiring if you are looking for a lawyer. Upon an affirmative indication, you are invited to accompany the tout to his lawyer who is claimed to be the best in the city or the most reasonable in his or her fees. If more than one tout is about, a competition or even jostling takes place between the touts for your hand to literally drag you to their respective lawyer. Taxi and mini bus touting engage is an extreme form of touting.

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