A nation in distress as its Treasury is devoured
Dear Editor,
Like Bharat Jagdeo’s address to Parliament in 2006, President Donald Ramotar address to Parliament in 2013 spouted the same type of propaganda aimed at bamboozling the people. He stated that he would do “all that is possible to enhance the skills and capacity of working people so that they will be able to enhance their earning power.” He further stated that he “intends to ensure that the workers in Guyana are not left on the sidelines of development.”
This statement has become the biggest joke of the decade? The refusal by the Chinese to hire Guyanese workers is repulsive to say the least. Mr. Ramotar is yet to prove to the people that he has the ability and requisite skills to lead this nation. As we all know, he is still governing in the shadow of his predecessor.
Let us pause for a moment and think of their physical and mental abuse of the working class on the Marriott Project and then focus on another known project – the GPL Electrification Modernization project being managed by of the Office of the Prime Minister.
Here we have a G$10 billion project to construct seven new sub-stations and upgrade the transmission and distribution electrical system. Is any of this G$10 billion being shared with the workers of Guyana?
All of this work is being executed by Chinese contractors who have refused to hire Guyanese workers even though their children will be called upon to pay back this G$10 billion in the future. To compound matters, we were advised by senior engineering personnel at GPL that the quality of work being done by this contractor is far from acceptable and will result in another white elephant like the Skeldon Sugar Factory. Such shoddy work will result in the taxpayers being saddled with billions of dollars in debt for poor work and the administration does not care.
Yet, being aware of this information, the lethargic majority opposition has done little or nothing to examine these white collar financial scams. Why is the majority opposition not advocating on behalf of Guyanese workers to secure jobs on this project? Who will manage these facilities when the Chinese are finished?
Please Mr. Granger; it is time for you and the others leaders of APNU to stand-up and defend the rights of the workers and do not allow this ruthless, uncaring and brutal PPP regime to trample on their rights.
To Gail Teixeira, this is not about your ridiculous claim of racism, it is about our compatriots’ national sovereignty being trampled upon at the altar of a scheme to defraud this nation and devour the Treasury. We plead with the majority opposition to take action now to ensure that the Treasury is not consumed by those who hold the reins of power.
How many more Pradovilles do they have to build to make them happy? How many more multi-million dollar swimming pools do they have to build from the sweat of the poor and the working class? How many more billions do they plan to take to make themselves happy? We charge the opposition to stop this cabal from raping the country. This cannot continue indefinitely.
Dr. Asquith Rose and Harish S. Singh