Change Is Coming Guyana.
The People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) presidential candidate, Dr. Irfaan Ali, was no-holds barred in tackling some of the criticisms that have been raised since his election as the candidate in January 2019.
One of these relate to his academic qualifications and having recently completed his doctorate at the University of the West Indies, Ali said, “My PhD was not to convince anyone as to who I am….education and educational accomplishment is an asset…it’s there to improve you improve your skillset to give you the type of technical competence that would help you to perform… there are people who would always be negative…I was never worried and I’m not worried now.”
According to him, nay-sayers will criticize, but his focus remains on working for the Guyanese people. On that note, when pressed on the view that his election as the presidential candidate represents a ‘puppet show’, Ali said, “I don’t see this as a general view. I see this as those who would like to sow the seeds of division, those who are negative. I see myself as the candidate not selected by Bharrat Jagdeo, but elected by the leadership of the Party. It was a process….this is no puppet show.”
“…to those who believe that this is a puppet show, go back to my period as Minister of Housing look at the results…review my performance…I am my own man and I am well supported and I’m very thankful for the support of all the leaders in the People’s Progressive Party….whilst I see myself as my own man, I see myself as part of a team that has a collective responsibility, collective ideas to take our country forward.”
TEAM EFFORT
Asked about the role of former president and PPP General Secretary, Bharrat Jagdeo, in a next PPP/C government, Ali said, “Mr. Jagdeo is the General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party and no doubt is a great asset to the PPP, to the people of this country and to any government. I see his experiences, expertise and competence as key assets in the next government.
“…the benefit of having a Bharrat Jagdeo on your team, of having his experience cannot be understated. It is enormous for any political party and I am convinced that the APNU+AFC would have to have a Bharrat Jagdeo of a similar figure on their side. Unfortunately, they do not have that asset, we in the PPP do.
“…there is a lot of myth about Mr. Jagdeo. The Bharrat Jagdeo I served under as Minister of Housing and Water is results-oriented…the targets were clear and the goals were clear… not for not for one moment was there any micromanaging, not was for one moment was there a notion about su- premacy…my responsibility as president would not be diminished in any way by having the competency and the skills and the experience of a Bharrat Jagdeo in the government.“
Ali explained that the importance of working as a team to deliver for the Guyanese people cannot be understated. “When I’m elected as president, I’ll be part of a team that that would be the caveat and I believe in a team approach. I’ll be part of a team. The team would have to ensure that we get results but the buck would stop at me as president…yes I have a lot of experience in politics but I am part of a bigger team that has even greater experience – a team that I think, when we pull together all our skills and the different competencies and skill set, presents more to the Guyanese people.”
CLEAR FOCUS
Looking ahead, the PPP/C presidential candidate underscored the fact that a clear focus is the order of the day. He said, “My focus is on policies and programs, on outlining is strategy – a very clear strategy – to all Guyanese in showing them what different we can offer and in showing them how we see the future of the unfolding.
“…in the development of our manifesto we have had the input of stakeholders, civil society and others at a stakeholder forum….it was a very serious process because we invited officially all the organizations – private sector organizations, civil society and key stakeholders from within the society. It was a very open process where anyone could have raised any issue….the more di- verse views we had enabled us to develop and structure policies and programmes to reflect the thinking of our people.
“…first of all we were looking at building a Guyana that is free, globally competi- tive, one that offers equitable opportunity, one that ensures social justice and one that gives us good governance and involves everyone in the process of development. The PPP/C in government will ensure that all Guyanese are involved and that all Guyanese feel as if they are that they will benefit from the prospects of the future.”
He acknowledged that being the Parliamentary Opposition has given Guyanese, particularly young Guyanese, a chance to compare the PPP/C with the APNU+AFC Coalition, as well as the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), which is the majority partner in the Coalition. He said, “Being an Opposition gives us the opportunity of showing how different we are. We’re com- ing also from position where were in government, so the electorate has a chance to see and review the track record of the People’s Progressive Party, the track records of the PNC and now the track record of the APNU+AFC and make a determination.
“…we’re in office for a long time and the campaign on change was fresh, it was popular. A lot of young peo- ple did not have a personal experience with another gov- ernment.”
SHIFT IN MOMENTUM
Relative to the success of the PPP/C in increas- ing its support base, Ali said, “I think from all my interactions on the ground – I’ve been spending a lot of time on the ground meeting people, listening to their concerns, listening to their interests – and I think that the shift towards the PPP is clear.”
Pressed on the worry about ‘ethnic voting’, he expressed confidence that come March 2020 there will be a greater move away “ethnic lines” since the PPP/C has been working hard to expand its support base, as well as counter misplaced notions about the Party. Ali stressed that the PPP/C is a national party – a fact that an increasing number of Guyanese – regardless of race or any other differentiating factor – are being made aware of.
“We are a national Party. We are perhaps the only national Party and if you look at what took at the Local Government Elections, it showed a great shift – a shift in the momentum towards the People’s Progressive Party….what we have to do and what we are doing is developing – and you will see this in the manifesto – a platform that reflects national priorities, not the priority of an individual group…every stakeholder must see themselves as part of that platform,” Ali said.
The PPP/C presidential candidate added, “…we have acknowledged publicly, over the last four years, there were areas where there were short- comings… we have already worked out those areas and to see where the improvements and needed and we are fixing those….don’t forget we were in government from 1992 and we won elections based on our performance…we did this without oil and gas
“…now if you look to- day what is taking place, there is a shift…you win the people by performance, you win people with what you bring to them, what you do to improve their lives….it is what you do, the policies…a well-designed policy frame- work that was structured to improve the lives of all people.” He urged all that all Guy- anese should judge the PPP/C by its record, its policies and the measures and plans it will present to take Guyana forward. “We should always be nationalistic, patriotic and we should always look to making our country better,” Ali said.
