A change has come

I remember October 1992 as though it were yesterday. There was to be a new government and as head of the Chronicle I knew that I had to go. On the campaign trail Dr Cheddi Jagan had said that the first head to roll would be mine. There are many things that happened after October 29, 1992. I was supposed to be jobless for the rest of my life.
And to make things even harder was the fact that I would not be given my pension or gratuity. But there is a God and he guided me along the way. Many people helped—Tony Vieira, a manager at Barama Company Limited who hired me to teach his daughter after Janet Jagan learnt that I was doing a stint there and got the people to terminate my services—and of course Glenn Lall.
For the records, Lall did not have it easy; he faced pressure to fire me, but he stood fast and the rest is history. But throughout all this, I was the PNC thug. Being a PNC supporter was tantamount to being a criminal. I wonder how my persecutors would react if I should hold that view.
I say these things because on Friday I walked into Neendkumar (Neil Kumar) as he was entering the media centre of the Guyana Elections Commission.  His words to me were not ‘Good morning’ or any greeting, but “Y’all gun kick dem boys ass.” I was surprised. I reminded him of ass-kicking in 1992 and silenced him.
I have lived to see the opposition return to power and the people behaving as though they have been released from jail—a 23-year-long jail sentence. This should not have been, because a government is for all the people. This was an oath every president took. None ever held true to that oath.
Carol Corbin must be smiling. She was one of them who got kicked in 1992. She had been showing Bharrat Jagdeo his job at State Planning Secretariat. As soon as the elections results came out, he sought and got her resignation. That story was never told, so when Kumar talked about kicking ass I wanted to give him a litany of real ass-kicking.
The new government will not be allowed to get away with the excesses of the previous one. The leaders will have to rule for all the people, even those at Whim who turned their backs on Moses Nagamootoo. At the same time, the overwhelming majority expect investigations into those leaders who suddenly became rich.
To a man or woman, people kept saying that they must be made to account for their abundant wealth. That was money that could have gone to help the people who kept struggling. A friend said that in the Bible, the writer spoke of the poor eating the crumbs from their masters’ table, but this set ate even the crumbs.
That is why people got frustrated at the delay in getting the final results. Many people had sleepless nights; some got sick. I hardly ate because I was so nervous. I too lost sleep, but it was worth it.
I now say to the people, don’t expect miracles overnight. A lot of work has to be done. We do not have a budget as yet. We need to revisit some of the projects that ate up millions of dollars for nothing. We all agree that there is need for hydro; we must continue the airport improvement programme and we must renew the focus on education. There is no need for arrogance and none will be tolerated.
They will also have to look at the media which was slavishly PPP. The state media must be open to all, so someone will have to go in and ask the staff to be professional. There will be no Kwame McCoy walking in and dictating what should be published.
When I was at the Chronicle, a Minister was supposed to overlook the paper. I put an end to that. I simply said that I was in charge and I would determine what was to be published. Failing that, I should be fired. The politicians immediately kept to themselves and the Chronicle remained the bestselling publication up until I left. Everyone got fair coverage.
The late Reepu Daman Persaud came to me often with material for publication. I never failed him. I expected the same from my successors, but they lacked the gumption to stand up. Enrico Woolford, when he was at GTV, reported on Desmond Hoyte’s ‘Putagee Mafia’ speech. He was not victimized because he was professional.
Nothing like that ever happened, because the media was believed to be the sole preserve of the rulers of the day. They abused it to the extent that they caused it to lose all semblance of credibility. The rebuilding process would not be long and the staff should feel no fear because they were harmless pawns.
There will be no more fraud at the Ministry of Home Affairs—no more soliciting money for passports and for work permits. Rest assured, corrupt people will be dismissed rather than hugged.
And unlike what Dr Roger Luncheon said to me when he tried to explain my removal from the Chronicle—”We threw out the baby with the bath water” —the new leaders are advised to keep people who are performing.  This is no time for wanton discrimination.