Dear Editor,
As a young lad, I was present when Guyana’s Prime Minister Forbes Burnham made his famous utterance in a speech at Parade Ground; I remember the mood of the crowd being ominous before the speech, the air was electric! Then on came the man and he started slowly, his sonorous voice had a calming effect; then his voice rose, it thundered “back to back, belly to belly, ah don’t give a damm, ah done dead ah-ready” the response was a spontaneous, primal roar of approval, forgotten were all the rumblings of discontent, that crowd, that night, would have fought Satan himself for the soul of their hero if asked.
Editor, the man thereafter dubbed the “Kabaka” would be saddened to see the state of his beloved People’s National Congress today. Led by a weak man with a chest full of medals earned in classrooms, the PNC cowers behind cries of “house to house” as they fear the wrath of an electorate betrayed most abominably. The Official List of Voters (OLV) used by the Guyana Elections Commission for the November 2018 Local Government Elections (LGE) remains valid until May 12, 2019, well past the March 19, 2019 deadline for General and Regional Elections as stipulated by The Constitution, our Supreme Law.
There were no claims of irregularity made to GECOM or reported flaws in the OLV by any party or group that contested the LGE in 2018. No issues have been raised in any forum or legal redress sought. The 2018 OLV withstood the test at an election in November 2018 and there is no reason for a “house to house” verification exercise at this time. The registration and verification exercise planned for June 2019 can be done at that time. The Granger Administration has mercifully left enough funds in the treasury to enable GECOM to carry out its mandate and deliver an election on or before March 19, 2019.
The PPP/C presidential candidate, Irfaan Ali at 38, is 3 years younger than Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (LFSB) was when he became Prime Minister, he is 3 years older than our youngest ever President Bharat Jagdeo was when he became President, he brims with passion to make a better life for all Guyanese, he has faced the vilest of accusations with an equanimity that demonstrates maturity beyond his years, Irfaan’s list of achievements, his experience and on the job performance already make him the most qualified candidate for the presidency in our nation’s short history. An impromptu campaign at Leonora on Sunday saw thousands roar their approval; they know we have a man from the people, for the people, pledging his service to benefit all Guyanese.
It pains me that so many reminders that our Constitution is inviolate have to be made to our Head of State. The leader of the party of Burnham professes to be a great admirer of the man and has turned his (D A Granger) former home into the Forbes Burnham Research Institute; however, Granger fails to emulate his hero’s indomitable fighting spirit, no more “back to back” instead, he hides behind the skirts of “house to house” .My father, Jai Narine Singh Sr famously wrote that Burnham had become a man whose “head has grown too big for his hat”. I can only surmise that he would have observed that Granger was trying to wear shoes much too big for his feet.
Respectfully,
Robin Singh
