Granger does not have the best interest of our people in mind

Dear Editor,
I read in a media article which quoted President David Granger in his address to PNC’s public meeting at Vreed-en-Hoop on February 03, 2019, saying “This is not about David or Irfaan. It is about the future of our children. It is about whether they can grow up in a democratic State. It is whether they could enjoy the quality of life that we promise them”. For me, this was an interesting statement and says a lot in my mind.
I must say I agree with the President that the elections are not about personalities but what is best for the future of our country. Bearing that in mind, can we really say that our President and his colleagues are guided by such lofty aspirations? In the short but eventful period of the Granger Administration, we greatly declined to the point where we are clinging on to a singular hope of oil which, as several have pointed out, is no panacea. Can we really be assured of a good future when our Government officials travel off to faraway countries for healthcare and our ordinary people have to pay taxes on medical care and medication? What should we expect when our people are incarcerated for the slightest of infractions and a Minister can trample signs in a darkened parking lot with immunity and reportedly have a security officer losing his job? Or how can we have confidence in tomorrow when many of our people have nothing to put on their tables but we read of our Governmental elite dining on King Crab and the fanciest of foods. Is the current crop of personalities best for our future?
The President said our children should grow up in a democratic state. But at the same time His Excellency delivered those remarks, he was openly and nakedly flouting the Constitution and a decision of the Chief Justice regarding the very democracy he wants our children to enjoy. He and his colleagues have cast dark shadows on our democratic foundation when he unilaterally named a Chairman of the Elections Commission, throwing away decades of tradition and precedent which worked. The Granger Government, we should not forget, also engaged in gerrymandering when it altered the construct of several Local Authorities just prior to the last Local Government Elections. Is this the democracy the President is speaking about?
The President spoke about delivering a good quality of life to our children. But it was his Government that imposed VAT on private education which it had to walk back after it was met with wide condemnation. It is his Government that charges taxes on crayons, pencils, books and other essential school supplies. It was his Government that took away the State support to school children. It was his Government that ended the one laptop project, essentially denying children access to a computer in their homes. Is this the good quality of life the President talks about?
The President talks a good talk, saying the right things but I have long learnt that actions speak louder than words. It is clear to me that the Granger grouping doesn’t have the best interest of our people in mind.

Yours faithfully,
Patricia Persaud