Jagdeo criticizes Govt for “sucking up” to foreign diplomats

…scolds Ministers for being lectured on how to run the country

Government ministers are being accused of sitting like “compliant children” being lectured by foreign diplomats on how to manage the affairs of their own country.
Former President and Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday lambasted the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government for sucking up to the advice being given by international representatives and for continuously shifting its policies to accommodate the likings of those from the foreign service.
“It pains me as a former President and a patriot to see the grovelling of our Government, the sucking up to people who are junior people in the international community, hanging on to their very last word as if it’s gospel,” he posited.
Jagdeo noted that most of the times, the advice being given is “loud and pure nonsense”, and is coming from junior representatives of the international community who know nothing about the country nor have its people’s best interest at heart.

“We can’t put junior officers up on a pedestal from the foreign service of any country and then like compliant people, all the ministers, sit like compliant students and get lectured about how we run our country, when their countries are sometimes in a mess more than ours,” Jagdeo emphasised.
As an example, he pointed to the fact that Finance Minister Winston Jordan keeps referring to the IMF report to prove that the economy is performing soundly when in reality, the situation is quite different.
“They quoted IMF figures to say there is no crisis in Guyana in the economy when your entire private sector is telling you to the contrary,” he highlighted.
The Opposition Leader noted that the international community is indeed important to the development of the country but posited that interactions must be done in a better way.
“I believe that as partners we should listen to them, it must be done in-house in a manner which is decent, in good faith, but it can’t be lectures. If it’s good for the country then we should welcome the advice and assistance but we must not feel obligated that everything they say to us we have to pursue,” Jagdeo said, noting that Government leaders must have the courage to stand up to these foreign diplomats.
“We have to determine our own foreign policy and what’s good for us,” he emphasised.
Jagdeo further explained that he has had interactions with several Presidents of the United States, past and present, however those diplomats never demonstrated any of the arrogance being displayed by those in Guyana.
Moreover, he stated that instead of lecturing the Government on what needs to be done, the diplomats can use their influence to provide the necessary resources to assist in dealing with the particular situation.
Throughout the years, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has been taking firm stances against what they describe as diplomatic interferences in Guyana’s politics.
The party had strongly objected to the involvement of the USAID LEAD-funded project, “Vote Like A Boss” education awareness campaigns across the country, citing that the project was perceived as inducing electors to vote along specific lines.
Last year, the PPP/C slammed the United Kingdom for its interference in Guyana’s politics after the outgoing British High Commissioner Andrew Ayre raised concerns about the prorogation of Guyana’s Parliament.
There was also the incident where former Education Minister Priya Manickchand delivered a “feral blast” against the US Ambassador Brent Hardt at a US Embassy Reception in 2014. At the time, she was acting in the capacity of the Foreign Affairs Minister.