May 20, 2017 Source
Dear Editor,
Leading up to the 2015 elections, the ABC countries all invested resources to provide the platform for the PPP to lose. It would take a person with the blindness of dozens to not visually conclude that the developed countries aligned their resources to help remove the PPP/C. It was the exact thing they did in 1992, to the PNC.
Jagdeo and the PPP saw the handwriting on the wall and they tried to reverse course. But it was too late. The Donald Ramotar administration claiming ignorance of the parameters of the $300 million Leadership and Democracy (LEAD) project scrapped it and threatened to deport its coordinator, Mr Glen Bradbury. Then Priya Manickchand went to the home of the US Ambassador, Brent Hardt and in angry tones, recorded her now infamous “Feral Blast.” This was because the Ambassador had publically stated that the PPP should behave democratically and set a date for Local Government Elections.
Several other attempts to remain in government were made by Mr. Jagdeo, both as President and as the default President, during Mr. Ramotar’s reign. They refused to set up the DEA and they also refused the assistance both from the Canadians and the British in reducing the rampant drug trafficking that was taking place. There was also the stench of the 400 plus unsolved murders and the rampant TIP stigma. Additionally, the PPP was seeking to align themselves more closely with China, Venezuela and India. All these were not sitting well with the ABC countries.
While all this was happening, the oil exploration was showing that Guyana would soon be a member of OPEC; as a significant partner. So the Americans, Canadians and the British kept their findings of the oil and gas under wraps, as they worked to remove, what they had classified as a corrupt, drug-infested, administration. Fast forward to 2017. The call in Guyana is now getting louder for Constitutional Reform. However, this would weaken presidential powers and allow for a more democratic approach to governance in Guyana. With the Indians forming a large voting block and Jagdeo still appealing to them, coupled with the constant missteps of the Granger administration, the ABC countries cannot afford for a PPP return to power. Therefore, it is no surprise that the British Ambassador, Greg Quinn, has recently announced that London will be taking a back seat with regards to Guyana’s constitutional dilemma.
I guarantee you that none of the North American countries will take up this slack. This is a strategic chess game. The PPP has blood in their eyes. And it is believed that a win for Jagdeo and his PPP will see an immediate reversal of all things American, British and Canadian. The belief of the ABC countries is that violence will re-escalate, corruption will raise its ugly head, massive illegal drugs will flow again to their countries, and the economic focus will shift again to China, India and Venezuela.
So there will be no rocking of Granger’s boat. The ABC countries are in morbid fear of what Jagdeo would do to them and to the Guyanese populace should they regain power. The United Republican Party (URP), fought to remove the PPP from power and we still believe we did the right thing. However, we are disappointed in the latest revelation of the British Ambassador and we are asking that London would reassess their role in the establishment of a Constitutional Reform Committee.
Like their predecessors, this current administration has become power drunk. Sad to say, but we have seen that we cannot depend on our local politicians to do right by the Guyanese people. We are therefore asking that the British Government, or any other foreign entity, remain or become intricately involved in our much needed Constitution Reform.
Dr. Vishnu Bandhu
