No present politician. No current political party.

It has to be a Peoples Movement. Perhaps, Working Peoples Alliance.

The Trade Union Council must lead the way and save Guyana from the PPP and PNC men and women who have only changed their clothes. Their nakedness masked of their corruptible ways of Forbes and the Jagans and all those who followed later. 

Give us Freedom from Freedom House. It hurts so bad.

I enjoyed reading these two letters

Letter ONE

Regardless of the positions we take locally, on the Int’l Scene we are only seen as Guyana

His Excellency President Donald Ramotar – President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana
Honorable David Granger – Leader of the Opposition
Honorable Khemraj Ramjattan – Leader of the Alliance for Change

Dear Sirs,

RE: THE AML/CFT AMENDMENT BILL

I am writing to express that I am deeply concerned about the delays in passing the amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering/ Countering the Financing of Terrorism Bill 2009 (AML/CFT) that are necessary for Guyana to comply with International Standards and to offer my views on the way forward.
It is my understanding that non-compliance to these standards will bring significant burdens on local businesses and their customers if counter measures are applied by our international trading partners as a result of Guyana appearing on any ‘watch list’. It must be noted, that in the Financial Sector, Guyana is already known as a high risk and low margin market for our international counterparts and any further deterioration of their margins or increase in risk may result in their withdrawal of service to us.
I take note of the work of the Parliamentary Select Committee and the fact that the original amendments in the bill placed before them were all accepted after some corrections were made. I further note that these amendments are sufficient to comply with the minimum standards of the Financial Action Task Force when passed and will result in compliance from the legislative perspective.
With regards to the additional amendments proposed by APNU, I believe in good faith, some compromises can be achieved as follows:
• The idea of having a Money Laundering Authority or Board is a good one. However, its members should be independent and appointed on technical and professional merit only.
• The recommendation to have a parliamentary appointments committee select the Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)has several limitations and may impede on the objectivity and effectiveness of the unit. However, the Authority mentioned above should serve as the Board of the FlU and will be responsible for the appointment of the Director as in the manner of the Board of a Company appointing a CEO. The Authority should be responsible for governance and oversight of the work of the FIU. It is my understanding that the FIU is not a law enforcement agency but an intelligence gathering agency supporting the Police and the Public Prosecutors in their law enforcement and justice efforts.
• Cash seizures should only be done at the points of entry and exit of the borders as is currently allowed by the AML/CFT Act of 2009 and recommended by FATF standards. If cash seizures are necessary for persons being investigated or under suspicion of money laundering within the borders, I recommend that the Police or Prosecutors obtain an Order of a Court issued by a Magistrate or Judge.
I hope all of you can find some merit in my proposals above.
In conclusion, I wish to further state that issues requiring compliance to International Standards and Conventions, when used as bargaining tools in the local political arena to extract political gains or wins from each other are dangerous and threaten the reputation of the Country as a whole. Regardless of the positions we take locally, on the International Scene we are only seen as Guyana, irrespective of which Party is in Government or Parliament.
In this regard, the amendments required to be passed for the AML/CFT Act of 2009 should not be tied or made conditional on any other local political objective being accomplished. I am convinced that there are many other opportunities which exist for such negotiations to take place.
I urge the Parties addressed in this letter to pass the amendments necessary to comply with the legislative requirements of the FATF Standards and to implement those standards rigorously to root out from our society the use of proceeds derived from criminal activities.
Dr. Yesu Persaud
Concerned Citizen of Guyana

Letter 2

With some serious managerial and policy changes, sugar could make the turn for the better

Dear Editor,
Even after the worst showing in over two decades by Guysuco, I cannot subscribe to the opinion that “sugar has passed its point of no return” as expounded on, quite skillfully by Professor Clive Thomas.  The sugar industry has formed an important bottom in 2013 but that bottom could be a false bottom proving Thomas correct.  But I am intimately aware of the talent in the sugar belt and I know with some serious managerial and policy changes in 2014, we could make the right turn for the better.  I was hearted that Guysuco was able to produce some 18,000 tonnes of sugar over the last two weeks and that is the kind of performance that can easily roll out production levels of 225,000 tonnes in 2014, which is critically needed to stabilize the cash flow situation in the industry.
I have observed some commentators postulated that “it is better Guysuco cut its loss and diversify into ethanol production”,  This comment makes much sense, since any sugar or sugar value-added product bears a good omen for the sugar belt.  However, I do not believe switching is the most cost effective strategy.  I believe that we should expand production and use the additional production to compliment sugar with ethanol, increase agro-energy and increase packaging of “table quality” Demerara Gold sugar.  Sugar is here to stay, since it is intertwined with the socio-economic life of the nation, especially for those 80,000 mouths that feed directly from the industry.  I was extremely happy that the AFC cleared the air on sugar and provided 100 percent support to the industry, since any other path would have been political “hara kiri” for that party that got more than half of its support in the 2011 elections from the sugar belt.
But these comments from the experts to diversify into non-sugar activities are nothing but careless political adventurism that ignores the core competence of the people in the industry. Any dabbling in non-sugar projects is a recipe for disaster and Guysuco should reject any such ideas swiftly. This business of “ultimately getting into aquaculture farming in the long run” is a great idea to be conducted by the Guyana Private Sector using their experts on un-utilized lands, but is not a project for Guysuco.  Sugar planting and manufacturing remains Guysuco’s forte and should never be watered down on economic sideshows.  In the days of cooperative socialism, the PNC Government tried its hands at diversification with the clear intention of reducing the industry’s vulnerability to external market forces. All these diversification projects failed miserably.
Land at an old sugar estate at Versailles was converted into a diary project which was supposed to feed the dietary needs of the nation for milk products including cheese. Tens of millions were lost in this adventure and caused Guysuco to lose focus on its fundamental business. Guysuco clearly did not have the core competence to pasteurize, store, transport and distribute the product at a price below what the market was willing to pay.
Then there were the tilapia ponds that were constructed on many of the estates. It was found by Booker Tate in 1990 to be uneconomical because clearly Guysuco did not have the talent to aggressively market and improve the product quality to compete both nationally and internationally.  It is quite fool hard to want to try a failed strategy again in 2014 when Guysuco does not have the talent to execute these ambitions; it is like giving a fisherman a pig pen and saying you are now a swine farmer. No we cannot!
I have now read the 2013-2017 Strategy Plan for Guysuco (so called Turnaround Plan) and while the document does have much merit, there are some elementary yet fundamental flaws in the document. It should be updated forthwith.
First off, the vision of the plan clearly cannot be reconciled with the mission which does not have a clear enough commitment on the financing, who are the identifiable skilled personnel responsible for the implementation of the plan, a very poorly constructed SWOT analysis and a missing sensitivity analysis. Already in 2013, the plan is off-course but yet we continue to talk in the Plan of a 350,000 tonnes production by 2017.  Clearly not possible!
All energies should be focused on taking Guysuco to its vision (half a million tonnes of sugar). The mission on the other hand has to be more realistic since clearly by 2017, Guysuco will not be producing 350,000 tonnes.  Many of the projections are clearly off target and not grounded in reality.  If the foundation of the plan is not grounded in reality, how can it illustrate with confidence how much and how it plans to increase sales of packaged Demerara Gold, reduce the cost of production and return the corporation to profitability.  What is really missing from the document is who will be held responsible for each targeted activity to produce the desired outcome.
I want to know who is the Field Manager at each estate and his experience at enhancing field productivity, I want to measure what each Factory Manager and Field Manager are being held to and if they fail to deliver on the targets what will be the consequences.  Are they getting all the resources needed to do their jobs?  If there is no accountability clause in the Plan, then it is only fit for a country club.
Then, I am not sure if these figures in this Strategy can stand up to scrutiny. In 2013,  we had an abysmal performance of 186,807 tonnes (a 23-year low), yet the Strategy talks about a 2013 production of 203,191 tonnes and a 2014 production of 250,986?  This is comical at best! Are Guysuco fortunes a fairy tale for them to continue to mislead the nation like this?  Yet the Board members were returned by President Donald Ramotar to continue to serve their diet of foolishness for another term but this time with a most unsuitable and incompetent new CEO Mr. Raj Singh.
Based on my discussion with some senior people in the industry who “live for sugar and will die for sugar”, the industry cannot produce at best more than 235,000 tonnes in 2014?  So how come these “sugar-experts” arrived at 250,986 tonnes? The buck on this one stops at the President Ramotar’s desk and he will be answerable if Guysuco does not meet its performance targets in 2014 because he is the one who appointed Mr. Raj Singh.
I also observed that this entire 2013-2017 Strategy is contingent upon the Skeldon Sugar Factory moving its production from 34,000 tonnes in 2013 to 52,780 in 2014.  Now we are really living in Alice in Wonderland on this one if we think this is possible.  In light of the Skeldon Factory been down-rated from a 350 tonnes of cane per hour to 250 tonnes, the Strategy continues to speak of a production rating of 300 tonnes of cane per hour at that Factory.
I have to recognize the excellent work done by the South African firm, Bosch Engineering at a cost of close to US$2 million.  These critical refurbishment works have put that Factory on a trajectory to meet a production capacity of 250 tonnes of cane per hours but there is still much work and testing to be done. Only until the second crop of 2014 is completed, will we know with greater certainty the capacity of this reconfigured factory.
I will stop here for now but I shall return with my thought on the following later:
1.     The community cost being absorbed by Guysuco at close to G$700 million a year;
2.     Some ideas on the mechanization process;
3.     The yield issues on the cane lands;
4.     Other cost cutting ideas;
5.     My thoughts on the SWAT analysis in the Strategy.
Sase  Singh

But these comments from the experts to diversify into non-sugar activities are nothing but careless political adventurism that ignores the core competence of the people in the industry. Any dabbling in non-sugar projects is a recipe for disaster and Guysuco should reject any such ideas swiftly. This business of “ultimately getting into aquaculture farming in the long run” is a great idea to be conducted by the Guyana Private Sector using their experts on un-utilized lands, but is not a project for Guysuco.  Sugar planting and manufacturing remains Guysuco’s forte and should never be watered down on economic sideshows. 

Source Letter to the Editor by Sase Singh

Another quote from Sase Singh

hen there were the tilapia ponds that were constructed on many of the estates. It was found by Booker Tate in 1990 to be uneconomical because clearly Guysuco did not have the talent to aggressively market and improve the product quality to compete both nationally and internationally.  It is quite fool hard to want to try a failed strategy again in 2014 when Guysuco does not have the talent to execute these ambitions; it is like giving a fisherman a pig pen and saying you are now a swine farmer. No we cannot!

Look gwan from the place Vera and your mad theory.

Ayo look how dem dis political prostitutes a bad mout Viera. De fact is Guysuco gat fah diversify. Dem gat foh produce sapadilla, kapadilla, ethanol, sydium, genup, coconut, sugar and milk. LOL! DIVERSIFY. Dat is de keyword. Ayo nah fite lika prostitutes.

it is all nice for us to talk here in NA, we all got lots of fat talk, but there is nothing that any of us will do about it.

Bai me a go grow genip and kapadilla. Meh bai Pavi seh he goh mix kapadilla, henny and poke cuttahs

the way of the guns can bring freedom it can turn crooks into saints,the darkest secret can come to light. 

Bauxite ceased to be profitable, so Guymine was sold and thousands of people forced into starvation.  Lindeners now have to go in the bush, or find other ways to sustain themselves and islands like Barbados, St Lucia, and St Vincent are full of them.

Sugar is no longer profitable, however because those who will suffer if it is privatized are Indians, Guyanese must continue to subsidize this industry, even as they are told that they must expect continued flooding becauise the gov't can't afford proper drainage and irrigation.

You all holding on to sugar need to understand two things.

1.  sugar consumption is declining as people adjust their diets.

2.  other nations can produce sugar more cheaply, and given that we no longer received the kinds of price supports that we used to from the EU, our ability to survive will be uncertain.

So just as how the nation couldnt care one fig about how people in Linden and Kwakwani fared I see no reason why we should care about Rosehall and Skeldon.  Sorry but whats good for the goose is good for the gander.  All those who have lots to say about Linden should say the same about Guysuco.

When we see the double standards we then wonder why we have this high level of alienation among Afro Guyanese, especially among those lower down the social ladder, where an increasing % have found themselves.

Understand one thing.  Any nation where a large minority groups feels serious excluded, and sees others consistently given preference, and doubele standards being applied against them, will continue to remain unstable. 

If we worry about the Indian, and think that we can hold the black in contempt, then we should not be surprised when people pour out of Linden,  Agricola, and Buxton/Golden Grove, etc., blocking roads and sabotaging the economy.

The elites who run APNU and the AFC dont care one bit about these people, which is exactly why in their frustration they might feel that they must resort toextra parliamentary means to make their point.  The issue in Linden a few years ago didnt start because the AFC, or APNU encouraged them.  Indeed those ambulance chasers ran down there, fearing that the rage would be turned against them as well.

so you saying linden can fight a war by themselves,a could of shots fire and they run and hide