Jagdeo challenges Phillips to fact-based debate on racism

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo is maintaining that African Guyanese benefited tremendously under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration and is prepared to engage in a fact-based debate with anyone who contends otherwise.
He was at the time responding to Dr Eric Phillips, who serves as a Director of the State Assets Recovery Unit and Head of the African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA), for what he described as attempts to polarise Guyanese by peddling racism.
The Opposition Leader accused Phillips of being among other Government-aligned persons who preach that Afro-Guyanese were discriminated against under the previous Administration.
But the former President argued that any independent assessment would prove that Afro-Guyanese achieved more under the PPP than in any other period in Guyanese history.
“We’re prepared to engage on a fact-based analysis in terms of access to land, Afro-Guyanese owned in that period more land than ever before; in terms of vehicles purchased … in terms of black-owned businesses, the greatest part came out in that period,” he stated.
He noted too that a large number of Afro-Guyanese accumulated wealth under the PPP/C.
“Look at Nigel’s Supermarket, which started under the PPP. It grew to the pinnacle under the PPP and now it’s failing. There are hundreds of similar businesses,” he stated.
Jagdeo said he was ready to challenge anyone on this matter as he has facts to debunk the allegations of racism against Afro-Guyanese, once and for all.
“But we are not going to win with people who have a racist agenda and who want to polarise the country,” he stated.
Jagdeo had previously recalled that the predominantly Afro-Guyanese Public Sector had been eventually pauperised owing to the devaluation of the Guyana dollar in the 1980s that had resulted in a decline in the minimum wage to US$25.00.
He had noted too that the predominantly Afro-Guyanese town of Linden got a brand new hospital, two new secondary schools, new housing schemes at Amelia’s Ward and Block 22, a new potable water supply system and subsidised electricity.
Other achievements by Afro-Guyanese, he listed, were access to land, public service jobs and home ownership. “I am proud of our record, how we have moved this country forward and a lot of our people; in fact, all of our people, made progress,” he had stated.