Dear Editor,
The first political movement in this country, The Political Affairs Committee (PAC), started under the leadership of the late President Dr. Cheddi Jagan in 1946, with Justin Hubert, Janet Jagan and Ashton Chase.
This led to the formation of the People’s Progressive Party on the 1st January 1950, with Dr. Cheddi Jagan as Leader, Forbes Burnham as Chairman, and Janet Jagan as Secretary.
From inception to present, the PAC and the PPP demonstrated, and remains, the only major multi-ethnic party in Guyana; a party which enjoys majority support of the Guyanese people and others.
In 1964, PPP lost the elections when the PNC and the UF formed the Coalition Government, which was dictated by the British. It must be noted that the PPP had won the majority of votes at those elections. The PNC continued in Government from 1968 to 1985 through rigged elections, which were recorded, and the whole world knew that.
Clearly, the PNC at that time did not enjoy the majority of the country, therefore they had to manage the country through dictatorship and poor decision-making, which led to that party’s failure and resulted in Guyana becoming one of the poorest and most bankrupted country in this hemisphere.
The PNC, which formed the greater part of the APNU/AFC Coalition, came back into Government in 2015, as declared by GECOM. They remained in office until 2020. During those 5 years, the Guyanese people went through hardship, and it was a troubled period. They imposed over 200 new taxes on the poor Guyanese people, closed down the sugar industry, the Rusal Bauxite Company in the Berbice River and the Linden Call Center, resulting in the loss of over 35,000 jobs and sending many Guyanese on the breadline.
I was not convinced that the PPP/C lost the 2015 elections, and although the PPP/C had filed an election petition, it was never heard. Looking at what took place within GECOM in 2020 left me in doubt of the 2015 results.
I, Andrew Forsythe, an engineer by profession and a longstanding member of the People’s Progressive Party for almost 30 years, have never regretted joining the PPP. I also had the opportunity to sit at the Central Committee Members meetings over a period of years, when Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo was President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, and I have never heard any discussion or witness any discrimination against Afro-Guyanese.
Under the brilliant leadership of Dr. Jagdeo, Guyana was able to move from being a poor country to being a middle-income country. I have also admired the works of Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali when he was Minister of Housing and Water; so, when he was elected as our Presidential Candidate, I knew that he would become a great President, because of his commitment to people and his work.
When you look at the PPP/C leadership and Cabinet members, you see true Guyana. Today, Guyana has the best leaders and leadership to advance the fast growth and development of our country, and we all are seeing this with our own eyes.
Very shortly, on June 12, 2023, we will have Local Government Elections, and I am pledging full support for the PPP/C Candidates and the Party, which will be guided under excellent leadership.
I want to take this opportunity to appeal to the people of Linden and Kwakwani to make a change and throw your support behind the PPP/C Candidates and the PPP/C, and give us a chance to manage the affairs of the Town of Linden and Kwakwani, and you will never regret making that change.
In closing, let me remind you that the present Opposition Central Party, PNC/APNU, was in Government from 2015 to 2020, and they had control of Government and Local Government and did not deliver, not even on one of the promises they made. Now they are out of Government, what promise can they fulfill? Please don’t be fooled again.
Since we came back in office, we have removed that tax burden; rebuilt and expanded our infrastructure development; massively improved our Health Sector, with 12 new hospitals coming on stream; started a massive housing drive; given free GOAL scholarships, and expanded technical training all over Guyana. Work is ongoing on the gas-to-shore project to bring cheap electricity to Guyanese; we are building new highways; there is heavy expansion in agriculture, and many more projects are coming on stream.
We, of the PPP/C, will continue to work with you to ensure that you enjoy a better livelihood. Let us work towards a “ONE GUYANA”, wherein all will benefit.
Respectfully,
Andrew Forsythe
