Dear Editor,
Nigel Hughes has been getting lots of attention recently. As next year rolls around, however, and as the nation begins to focus on elections, the public must get answers to some burning questions on Hughes’ mindset and his policy positions. To facilitate this process, fifteen questions are posed for him below. I remind Hughes that clarity of his answers is essential.
1. Are you, the AFC, and APNU willing and ready to apologize for delaying the elections for nearly 437 days after the No-Confidence vote was taken in the National Assembly on December 21, 2018?
2. Are you willing and ready to apologize for the ridiculous argument that 33 does not constitute a majority over 32?
3. Are you remorseful for the broad daylight attempt by the AFC to help steal the elections of 2020?
4. If the answer to question three is yes, when will you apologize for the disruptive and unconstitutional behavior of the AFC, the party that you now lead?
5. Are you, Sir, ready to apologize to the 7047sugar workers who were let go by APNU-AFC and forced onto breadlines.
6. Are you willing and ready to acknowledge and apologize to the hundreds of bauxite workers who lost their jobs under the APNU and your party, the AFC?
7. When will you apologize for the broken promises and betrayal of trust to these workers and their families?
8. When will you apologize for the lopsided deal that the APC member signed with ExxonMobil and partners?
9. Are you willing and ready to apologize for the US$18 million that the APNU-AFC took from the oil companies after signing a lopsided contract?
10. Are you prepared, willing and ready to make your tax records public in the interest of transparency and accountability?
11. Is the AFC ready to acknowledge and apologize for the 200 taxes that were placed on the backs of the Guyanese people and Guyanese businesses during its five-year rule between 2015 and 2020?
12. Will you apologize to the 185,000 students (annually) who had their Because We Care cash grant taken away from them between March 2015 and July 2020?
13. Are you willing and ready to apologize for the one-month bonus taken away from the uniformed forces during the APNU-AFC rule?
14. Since the law firm (Hughes, Fields, & Stoby), of which you are a partner, represents the interests of ExxonMobil Guyana (EMGL), and since you are the head of a political party, how will you resolve the obvious conflicts of interest that are bound to arise?
15. Can you clarify how you can possibly maintain your contractual obligations to EMGL, while at the same time further the national interest of Guyana, many of which are non-negotiable?
After you answer these questions I will pose the further 53, but will save the ink in my hope that the conscience of the defeated will find favor in the truth.
Sincerely,
Dr Randy Persaud
