Now that the day of judgement is nigh upon Mad Maduro and Venezuela’s border controversy that they concocted to claim two-thirds of our country, we’ve seen them start foaming at the mouth, rattling their war sabres, and pulling stunts like their bootstrapping “referendum”. How in God’s name – not to mention international law – can the citizens of one country purport to legitimize their takeover of another country through THEIR vote??!!
Whatever Mad Maduro and the state organs he controls announce after the “vote”, it would be as illegitimate as Burnham’s purported referendum back in 1978 – which eliminated the referendum necessary to ratify his new constitution that gave him supreme powers!! Burnham announced a 97% approval, while outside observers verified that there was a less that 12% turnout!! But that’s the way with dictators, eh?? Now, some might complain that this ain’t the time to hang Burnham’s dirty bukta in public; but hey!! Not because he was right on the border issue meant he was right about messing with our constitution!!
And that brings us to our troops – which Burnham had built up in the seventies to one of the highest military-civilian ratios in the world: 1 soldier to every 35 citizens!! Twenty-three men and women in one kind of uniform or the other!! And the excuse offered to the accusations that his troop buildup was intended to cow the Opposition and the populace?? Hey… weren’t there those Venezies at our western border who had just invaded and seized our half of Ankoko island right after our independence?? The army’s marches through Opposition villages weren’t intended to intimidate them after the 1968 rigged elections – merely to raise their morale after our defeat on the western front!!
Then there were those Surinamese who had the gall to actually cross the New River in 1969 and occupy that part of our country they claimed as theirs!! Burnham had to’ve been given the benefit of the doubt!! And that brings us to the point your Eyewitness wants to make today. Back in 1969, a handful of GDF soldiers and their makeshift “air wing” improvised magnificently and routed the Surinamese soldiers from their camps back across the border. Under the command of Major Roland da Silva, the Chief Pilot, two twin Otters were modified – with a gunner, Hartley Liverpool, strapped in on the front of one of them – and along with 22 troops commanded by Captain Martin Nascimento – saved Guyana’s 5000 sq mile New River Triangle for us!! And since then, the Surinamese never tried repeating that stunt!!
Our highest praises to those soldiers – with a shoutout to its Portuguese members!! It ain’t too late for some medals to be struck in their honour.
…worthy Guyanese
The University of Guyana have decided to award Honorary Doctorate of Philosophy degrees to several worthy Guyanese during their graduation exercise being held tomorrow. The awardees are: high-level Government appointee in Britain, Baroness Valerie Amos; actress CCH Pounder of US TV and cinema fame; flautist Keith Waite; painter Bernadette Persaud; Karateka Shotokan Frank Woon-A-Tai; linguists Jeanette and the late Richard Allsopp; cricket commentator Joseph ‘Reds’ Perreira; businessmen Abdool Sattaur Gafoor and Kenneth Singh; and last but NOT LEAST, cricketer extraordinaire Rohan Kanhai.
Now, that’s quite a list, innit?? And it’s of more than passing interest that most of them are foreign-based!! It’s your Eyewitness’s hope that, with our economy taking off under the oil-fuelled development trajectory under the PPP Government, more Guyanese will be remaining in our dear Mudland for their achievements to help raise our overall standards!! Cause there’s nothing that creates success like success – especially when we can see living and breathing persons demonstrating that success.
If they can do it…so can each one of us!!
…all able-bodied citizens of
Guyana should declare, “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country”!! Let’s mobilize 10,000 able-bodied men and women as a human shield behind our army on the western border!!
