Dear Editor,
The arrival in Guyana’s waters of the “One Guyana” FPSO has been met by a predictably bellicose official statement of protest from Caracas. The arrival of the catchword “One Guyana” has also been met by the opposition of a significant minority of Guyanese; and so it is that, today, both Caracas and that significant minority of Guyanese share a common opposition to “One Guyana”.
Editor, I think that is crazy – and potentially very dangerous to our national security.
The border controversy with Venezuela involves ‘many blades of Guyanese grass’, so the Guyanese nation as a whole takes it seriously and speaks and feels as one whenever the Venezuelan leader threatens.
That sentiment is not easy to maintain in parliamentary systems worldwide, as the politicians in the Parliamentary Opposition would often oppose for opposition’s sake, and promote divisive opposition messages among their followers. Where this normal political behaviour becomes crazy is where its very expression is unpatriotic in objective reality, even if unwittingly.
Yes, it just cannot be patriotic to be opposed to the inspirational appeal of the unifying catchword “One Guyana”. Caracas sees “One Guyana” from a different perspective, of course, and is fundamentally opposed to the whole 83,000 square miles of Guyana being One Guyana, preferring to make it two – with the bigger part administered from Caracas!
Unlike that significant minority of Guyanese, Caracas also specifically opposes the FPSO “One Guyana”, which by 2027 should boost Guyana’s crude oil output to 900,000 bpd, up from the current average daily production of 616,000 bpd.
Here is where the danger lies: If some Guyanese continue to unthinkingly and unknowingly be misled by politicians who peddle worn-out, untrue, and repugnant race-based messages, our country would be ripe for the taking.
The expression ‘divide and rule’, and its historical application by institutional rulers, is well known; yet, some of our young people are growing up in homes where they hear race-based messages being repeated. About half of our entire population comprises persons who are just 26 years old. They have no personal connection with events that took place decades before they were even born, and so, in the overwhelming majority of cases, their normal day-to-day interactions rarely, if ever, involve unsavory thoughts or encounters based on racial differences.
There are some who have embraced the erroneous suggestion that “One Guyana” is intended to replace ‘One People, One Nation, One Destiny’ – our National Motto. That suggestion is simply unfounded; our National Motto will always be our National Motto. All independent states have a national motto, and those of former British colonies are rather similar in their aspirational intent. The National Motto of Jamaica, for example, is ‘Out of Many One People’ – so it could well have been Guyana’s, and ours could well have been Jamaica’s National Motto. “One Guyana” is about giving life today to the national motto we have cherished for almost 60 years. Some folks in the said significant minority unrealistically expect to see dramatic change instantaneously!
We really do need to be unified: to be “One Guyana”, and not only when Maduro rants about “Esequiba”.
As expressed by Vickram Bharrat, National Resources Minister, “The arrival of the One Guyana FPSO is a powerful symbol of progress…in the continued empowerment of our people through job creation, local business opportunities, and investments that support development across Guyana”.
Editor, the arrival of “One Guyana” – both the catchword and now the FPSO – should be celebrated throughout the length and breadth of our resource-rich country. Being allied with Caracas against “One Guyana” in any context whatsoever is unpatriotic at best. A “sometimes Guyanese” cannot be relied upon as a true Guyanese. Our country would need a lot more people coming here to help drive our development, and as time progresses, Guyanese nationals would exclusively become entitled to increasing benefits.
So, we need to know now who are the Guyanese among our increasing population. Some of those legally admitted into our country and not considered to be allied with Caracas will, in time, qualify to become citizens of Guyana. In other words, they and their offspring would be more Guyanese than those Guyanese who are this moment still missing the important mission that is “One Guyana”.
At this juncture of the history of our nation, unity is the single most important mindset required of our people. The aim of a positive shift in work ethic, while important, can be attained by the input of immigrants anyway. Presenting a formidable diplomatic face to the world – both to our Western border aggressor and would-be colonizers alike – should be regarded as the immediate priority of all Guyanese. “One Guyana” is about preserving our very future as One People, of One Nation, with One Destiny.
Yours sincerely,
Ronald Bostwick
