Dear Editor,
Guyana is a gifted land, to love, cherish and protect and so, we should not give this gift away. Guyana marked its 53rd Republic anniversary and is preparing to observe its 57th Independence. This highly pristine country was both developed, damaged and destroyed by invaders, colonialists and certain leaders but yet, she defied many rapers who plundered her treasures and she reserved her voluminous natural resources to provide enough wealth for her citizens residing within, to be distributed profusely at the right time and by the right one. This country has benefitted and suffered while undergoing many ruler-ship changes.
Guyana’s republic status was undoubtedly declared to coincide with the birthday celebration of a charismatic but callous character so that, this nation will not forget the man behind the scene. He, unfortunately, rode this land as a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde on a horse dressed as an acclaimed General, aloof with his cigar puffing with an air of English aristocracy while, looking down on citizens as mere peasants to remind them of a class distinction and their master born to rule forever. Guyana also became independent on a mischievous date engrained to remind the people of a day besmirched with evil. Such a dictator was proud of his decision. The doctor did not heed the warning of a designed disease, an illusionist, who made even the Devil cringed.
And so this destabilizer was the chief architect who created “The Great Downswing” in the 1970’s and caused mass migration from this fertile land, Guyanese from all ethnicities and class forced to flee this Promised Land from terror, reigned by a fist of vice. No wonder the Diasporas are both smiling and crying as they wage the blessings and blisters of the snow, cold, heat, the luxuries and the loneliness. Some prosper in the lands where dreams come true while some are plagued by nightmares, caught up in the fast lane and unable to cope with any disciplined control. The bright lights blind the beauty and the tall skyscrapers become unreachable. Many silently crave for the sunshine, the coastal breeze and the fresh greens, vegetables, fruits, fish and the simplicity of Guyanese domesticity.
The Great Fog of London in 1952, lasted for five days, from Friday 5th Dec., to Tuesday 9th, wintery days consumed with cold weather and blanketed with air borne pollutants from the burning of coal, resulting in thousands of deaths. In the 50’s, many Guyanese, primarily, had trekked the Atlantic Ocean by boat and BOAC to change residence from an English Governor to an English Queen, to endure the humiliation of discrimination. Those were the days when families had to go to Cable and Wireless in Georgetown to receive a call at Christmas from their overseas relatives, or, wait for hours at some privileged neighbor’s home with a phone. The shift from UK saw Guyanese flying to America from Atkinson Airport and later to Canada from Timehri Airport. Now a phone call is only fingers away and this country is laden with highways and hotels so that flyers do not have to sleep over at the Cheddie Jagan airport. . The manicured Bourda green was where Guyanese stalwarts like Rohan Kanhai, Joe Solomon, Basil butcher, Lance Gibbs, Roy Fredericks, Stephen Camacho, Clive Lloyd, Alvin Kallicharan and others to follow, dominated West Indian cricket to add name and fame to the game of cricket, thereby challenging the might of the English to beat them at their own game to restore the pride and dignity of the people from a sugar estate colony. At any ball game, only then Guyanese from all walks of life truly unite to hug, slap each other on the shoulders, shake hands, share their food and drink, applause with a smile, shout each other down, cry without shame, why, because they dance to the same music in support of a common cause! “One Guyana” is what Guyanese should strive for as portrayed and promulgated by the popular President.
The call to return to Guyana by the ruling administrator, promotes the perspicacity of a suitable solution as an alternative to the hustle and bustle of overseas living and/or an opportunity to invest in Guyana, while enjoying the luxury of a Guyanese way of life once again and to experience the rich, diversified culture of a country developing at a fast rate to become the richest nation per capita in this hemisphere. It affords the rare chance in a life time to compare and contrast but not to compromise as the Government accelerates an infrastructural program to modernize Guyana and provide the latest technology and services as conveniently available and necessary. The country’s astute administrator currently is gaining momentum as one of the leading referrals globally, who is universally accepted for his dynamic management and his approach as a problem solver, and, is invited and acknowledged as a demanding presenter at any international forum.
Many Diasporians are waking up to the chill of reality as they look through the frosted window to witness the desolation of isolation, represented by a leafless tree surrounded by solid snow, the warmth of nostalgia escaped with the uncomfortable reminder of a cold room. The dreariness bounces off the whiteness from the outside and reflects the dark moment inside. It becomes a challenge to remember the mess created by the superiors in a place that was once a palace where people prospered with pennies! Time is indeed fleeing and the conscience is knocking loudly with guilt to acquiesce to the fact that a few greedy, self-centered and devious ones must be wrong when the rest of the justified world is legally and legitimately right. Something the current Government is doing must be good for Guyana and cannot be all bad for the people. As an honest Guyanese, let’s see things through the one color of blood and not the many colors of the skin. After all, this is the period of Lent!
Yours respectfully,
Jai Lall.