The Ministry of Tourism is upset over negative reaction to its video Homecoming Guyana 2015 stating that the comments are shocking and point to a troubling trend.. “as a society , not only are we encouraging unpatriotic thinking but we are descending into an abysm of negativity that will have lasting effects.”

The video which featured Minister Ali saying Splashmins was “one of the most luxurious nature resorts in the world” was taken down soon after. But by then, one critic had produced his own video “Real Homecoming 2015″ that uses Minister Ali’s voice talking over shots of garbage heaps and homeless people.

The ministry stated on its FB page “It is with grave concern that we have noticed, over the last few hours, the outpouring of negative comments and reviews in relation to a video production for Guyana Homecoming 2015. While we remain tolerant and respectful of everyone’s opinion, the recent comments/posts on the Visit Guyana Facebook page are shocking and point to a troubling trend; as a society , not only are we encouraging unpatriotic thinking but we are descending into an abysm of negativity that will have lasting effects.

As a nation we need to be more responsible in our actions and we need to recognise that negative publicity about Guyana is eroding the strides made in marketing and promoting the country as a premier tourist destination.

Moreover, we need to open our eyes to the fact that once negative comments and stories are written, we cannot retract then and they are available for the world to see.”

The creator of the spoof video told “The Mosquito” he made his version because the original video was “insulting to Guyanese. “The minister talks about visiting the best of two worlds in one country but I think he is talking about the world of the PPP and the world for the rest of us.  He had his chance to show his version of how he lives and I put out my version for the rest of us and I did not make up one bit of footage.”