Now is not time for small-minded politicians, divisiveness or racial politics

Dear Editor,
I am disappointed, shocked and appalled at the level of Opposition politics taking place in our country at present and in the lead-up to local government polls, to be held on June 12, 2023.
Firstly, the type of language and political rhetoric used at public meetings and rallies of the combined Opposition is increasingly inciting division and segregation among our people. It is publicly racist and demeaning.
I feel opposition politicians are not demonstrating the kind of responsible rhetoric that the public has come to expect from a leader who has an interest in becoming either the President or Minister in the future.
I condemn all the parties and groups that support either partially or wholly this level of politics or political rhetoric. I draw attention to the silence of the Guyana Human Rights Association, civil society, non-governmental groups, and independent commentors.
Every Guyanese who facilitates the political campaign being waged by the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), and the Working Peoples Alliance party (WPA) is guilty of supporting more divisiveness and a disunited Guyana. They are supporting a Guyana in which the Opposition statements can go unchecked, unfiltered, and down a path of being unhinged.
Secondly, this is sad and unfortunate that leaders of combined Opposition do not research or know the subject of the topics they are speaking about at the meetings and rallies, leading to a vast and troubling amount of misinformation, disinformation, misleading statements and political lies being levelled against the Government of the day and individual members of the Government.
They slander and libel the members of the Peoples Progressive Party daily, without exception, and then abuse the privilege under the Parliament or politics, and the freedom of speech to shield themselves. I think the freedom of speech does not empower these Opposition politicians to tell blatant lies or different versions of the truth because they suit them politically.
Thirdly, I do not, nor will I ever, support the racial incitement of violence against the different ethnic groups seemingly by the combined Opposition. I stand against political violence because there is simply no justification for it in Guyana in the year 2023.
I reject the WPA, David Hinds, Tacuma Ogunseye and Rickford Burke for seeking to allegedly stir up conflict and the pot of ethnic hostility and racism in our society in order to win votes. These are dangerous men, but I know Guyanese will not follow, act, or listen to the things they are saying on their public social media platforms.
I support the military, joint services and the Guyana Police Force, which will act professionally at all times, regardless of the temptation to be political from either side of the political divide.
I support the law and legality, and hereby believe that the authorities should not turn a blind eye to political heresy, political and racial incitement of PNC/R, APNU, WPA and any other social media personality in the leadup to the local government polls.
This common, puerile and reprehensible type of politics must end in modern Guyana.
Finally, it is either you have the facts, or shut up! The Opposition is sounding very stupid whenever they make these allegations of discrimination and racism but cannot point to some specific cases. They must be challenged, because it is Guyana’s image regionally and internationally that they slander, not the PPP alone, as they seemingly intend.
The Leader of the Opposition should use some of the money or Opposition resources they have to commission a factual and analytical analysis of discrimination, racism, and all other allegations he makes against the PPP Government. Again, this is baby politics and politics 100 being practised in our society. Where are the issues, plans and policies that Opposition politicians will present to make local government work efficiently and effectively for the people?
Now is not the time for small-minded politicians, divisiveness, or racial politics, but the time for building Guyana, so the reality of ‘One Guyana’ can continue to be fashioned from an idea into a functioning reality.

Yours truly,
Michael Younge