APNU MP’s “mentally lazy” utterances are downright racist – AG lambasts Amanza Walton-Desir

…complaint lodged with ERC

Opposition Member of Parliament (MP) Amanza Walton-Desir continues to be called out for comments she made targeted at supporters of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), who she described as “mentally lazy.”
Attorney General and PPP Executive Anil Nandlall on Saturday slammed the Opposition MP for her comments, noting that her stereotypical analysis is “completely misconceived” and “palpably wrong.”

“More importantly, her utterances are downright racist, discriminatory and absolutely repulsive. Utterances like those have no place in any modern, democratic and civilised society, moreover, one which is as multi-ethnic as ours. Indeed, protection against such stereotyping is guaranteed to every citizen of this land as a fundamental right by the Constitution of Guyana,” Nandlall said.
“That a parliamentarian, masquerading as a political leader from the official, constitutional opposition in a country can conceive those thoughts and worse yet, proceed to express them, publicly, is evidence of a demented mind and decayed political culture.”
Nandlall also highlighted the fact that neither Walton-Desir nor her political party have retracted or criticised the comments. He noted the contrasting silence as compared to when they rallied to her defence after her performance as legal advisor at the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) was called into question.
“The fact that there has been no retraction thus far, nor a word of criticism from her political leader or colleagues alike, compounds the toxicity. The silence of those who were so loud in her defence a few months ago, when a Minister of the Government spoke critically of her professional performance and work ethics, is indeed deafening. In the end, it all culminates in illustrating how unadulterated bigotry has assumed normalcy in this society.”

Comments
The offending comments were made by Walton-Desir during a recent show “Politics 101” hosted by the Working People’s Alliance’s (WPA) Dr David Hinds, who was present and nodded in approval to said comments.
“Unfortunately, that part of the political divide on the PPP have a base that prefer if they say this is what is going to happen, men are going to come and rape your children, they believe that. Because the burden of sorting things out for themselves, is too great,” Walton-Desir said during the show.
“And so they remain trapped, all the while believing they are free to think and self-determine. They don’t have the freedom of self-determination. Because freedom requires responsibility… so we have a bunch of mentally lazy people. The PPP understands this very very well and so they capitalise on it,” Walton-Desir added, to nods of affirmation from Dr Hinds.
Walton-Desir had gone on to insist that the other side of the political divide, the supporters of A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC), possessed these self-determining qualities.
“Contrast the supporters of the PNC for example, who are far more inquisitive and enquiring and who have a greater appreciation of the democratic process,” Walton-Desir went on to say during the show.

Complaint lodged
The Indian Action Committee (IAC) has meanwhile lodged a complaint with the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) over Walton-Desir’s comments. According to the IAC in its complaint, it is impossible given Guyana’s political context, to mistake the Member of Parliament’s (MP) comments for anything but a racial attack and they, therefore, urged that the investigation be swift and thorough.
“The IAC therefore forthrightly condemns in the strongest possible way and rejects such comments which it believes are repugnant, describe that group of Guyanese as being mentally enslaved, intellectually incapable and inferior to supporters of the Party she represents. Her tirade, which was demonstrative of her blatant disrespect to the Guyanese she wantonly and deliberately targeted, is totally counterproductive to efforts to foster national unity.”
“Further, the IAC is not unmindful of the reaction of Dr Hinds when the comments in question were made. His sustained shaking of his head in the affirmative, can only be interpreted as him being in agreement of what was said by Mrs Walton-Desir. An absence of any semblance of condemnation from him and the leadership of her Party, can only be seen as tacit support of the comments,” the IAC said.
The IAC reminded that Indo-Guyanese, like all others, have made and continue to make invaluable contributions to the development of Guyana and for the advancement of Guyanese. According to them, these contributions are evident in every sphere of our society both at home and in the Diaspora.
“The IAC believes that such comments have no place in our society and is unbecoming of someone who holds the esteem position of a Member of Parliament. Having viewed her comments as racially insensitive, offensive and derogatory, the IAC has since lodged an official complaint with the ERC and has brought it to the attention of the Honorable Speaker of the National Assembly,” the IAC said.