PNCR General Secretary Oscar Clarke after being shot by bandits
Now that one of their own has become a victim of the very criminals whose actions they justified and offered tacit support to over the years one hoped that the PNC(now APNU) would abandon their stance and embrace the Strategic and Implementation Plans for the Guyana Police Force (GPF) – 2013-2017 put forward by Home Affairs Minister Clement Rohee. Any such hopes were quickly dashed when APNU leader David Granger used the occasion for politicking and instead sought to blame the government.
But Granger is being disingenuous as he knows fully well that the Guyana Police Force is the only entity tasked with combating crime in Guyana and even the most fervent booster of the GPF would concede that reform of that institution was long overdue. And even though Granger and his Opposition colleagues agree on the need for reform and specifics of Rohee's plan it was the very Granger along with his buddies in the AFC who announced that they will not cooperate in its implementation unless their earlier demand for Rohee's removal is met. So if Granger's sudden awakening is to be taken serious he and his opposition colleagues fully understand the gravity of the situation they must put aside narrow political self interest and work along with the government in the interest of the people.