2018 is here and Guyanese at home and abroad are extremely hopeful that things here will take a turn for the positive as the Government and all stakeholders put their backs to the wheels of industry in order to secure a better life for every citizen.
In order for the country to climb out of the slums of political divisiveness, a deliberate and more genuine effort must be made on the part of President David Granger and Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo to meet more often and dialogue about issues that are extremely important to the overall socioeconomic well-being of the country.
They must also agree on a tripartite process that would be undertaken to discuss the critical issue of building political unity and trust amongst the coalition parties and the People’s Progressive Party (PPP). This would be a very good undertaking for both of these erudite leaders. It would also signal the turning of a new page and the birth of a commitment to rid Guyana of all forms of avoidable political gridlock and turmoil.
Additionally, such a move would be welcomed by all Guyanese and seen as a demonstration that 2018 can be the year when the old and entrenched political architecture, which has kept this country divided, racially and socially, collapses. These leaders can then work towards putting a feasible mechanism in place that leads to consensus building and compromise in the Parliament, especially as the coalition prepares to heighten its legislative bid to secure constitutional reform.
Secondly, the Government must push itself to work much harder to deliver on tangible forms of stimuli that can breathe life into Guyana’s dying economy. If this is done, then the economy will move and business will boom until the Government pursues more medium and long-term incentives that could boost domestic growth and attract both regional and Foreign Direct Investments. This means that a coherent and realistic policy must be adumbrated following a period of consultation with financial stakeholders on what else can be done to add buoyance to the economy. In other words, the Government has to put its political and economic pet peeves aside and dialogue with the Private Sector agencies which understand how to maximise profits and cut losses without losing out on the benefits of pursuing ‘value added’ incentives.
And with the massive announcements made in 2017 about the discovery of large amounts of oil and gas here, more must be done to safeguard Guyana’s patrimony. We can ill afford to leave negotiations with big companies with “peanuts” as we saw with the badly-negotiated ExxonMobil deal. Guyana must leave the room after pushing for the best possible terms and agreement. We cannot short sell ourselves in order to attract investments. We must learn from all that happened with that particular matter, and the Government must strive in the future to be more honest, open and transparent in its undertakings or we will sink deeper into economic hardship and be lured into oil corruption.
Thirdly, 2018 can be the year when the security forces unveil a pragmatic strategy for dealing with the rising levels of crime and criminality. The Force appears to still be in ‘reactive’ mode. It has to understand that if more effort is spent rolling out initiatives to prevent crime, like the community projects it is undertaking, then its job will be much easier. While having access to more resources, both human and capital, are important in the scheme of things, building internal capacity and professionalism as well as fighting systemic corruption is of greater importance when attempting to boost public safety and security. This year, those at the helm of the security sector must strive to boost the morale of serving ranks in order to maximise their productivity.
Fourthly, as Guyanese celebrate 2018, no one must lose focus of the external threats to Guyana’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. Venezuela seems intent on dragging out the border controversy, but hopefully it climaxes with a decision by the United Nations Secretary General to end the Good Offices Process and transfer the matter to the International Court of Justice in The Hague. We must unite and rally around the Government which is doing all that is necessary to prepare itself for the process. We must demonstrate that we will not give up a blade of grass nor cede any part of our country to any outside force. The Opposition and Government are on the right page. They must work together this year to ensure that Guyana emerges victorious.
Finally, all citizens owe it to their fore-parents to work together to improve the well-being of their fellow countrymen. As opposed to focusing on our ethnic differences and the other things that separate us, we must strive in 2018 to focus more on the things that unite us with the view of achieving higher levels of social cohesion, morality and political as well as religious tolerance.
