So what’s next… on the census?

As recounted in one of Aesop fables – with a moral! – there was this mountain that laboured and finally after much groaning and moaning, produced….a mouse!! The moral being that it’s unwise to make a fuss over something that ultimately turns out to be insignificant. And we arrive at the just announced results of the national census that was done in 2022. The Opposition has complained bitterly – and continuously – that the delay with the results was deliberately manipulated by the dastardly PPP – for its own nefarious ends!!
Such ends – of course – being to deny the said Opposition of its God-given – actually “Burnham-given” but then didn’t he see himself as a god?!! – right to rule over Guyana. And how the heck would a census affect the method of choosing a government in Guyana – democratic elections – now used after Burnham’s passing? He, of course, in his (infinite and omniscient) wisdom used to decide ahead of time which party was best suited to take that burden. Invariably, the “vanguard PNC” with him at the helm – and would make the necessary arrangements for that outcome!! The PPP and other sore losers called the process “rigging” but missed the point that isn’t all other events in our lives “rigged” by God – which we even praise as being “by His mercy’??
Anyhow, back to the 2022 census. This showed was our population actually GREW by then to 878,674– representing a 17.6% increase from the 786,955 registered in the previous 2012 census!! Now one of the reasons the Opposition might’ve supposedly kvetched about the “hidden” census results was they claimed ad nauseam that the Voters List – of citizens over 18 – was BLOATED since it was so high compared to the 2012 numbers!! The 2020 OLE contained 661,378 names and the 2025 one, 757,690 – 85% and 96% respectively.
It was pointed out till the officials were blue in the face that since Guyanese on the OLE can’t be taken off ‘til its shown they’re dead, most of those who migrated remain!! And then the Guyanese population would’ve grown since 2012. In Barbados and St Vincent – which has the same rule on retaining emigrated citizens – the percentage is 89 per cent – but they don’t carry on!! So the question your Eyewitness has is – WHAT BENEFIT WOULD THE PPP HAVE GAINED FROM HIDING THE 2022 CENSUS RESULTS SINCE IT SUPPORTED THEIR POINT THAT GUYANA’S POPULATION – AND IT’S VOTING PORTION – WOULD’VE GROWN??? And that there was no bloating – just bloviating!!
Extrapolating from the 2022 census trends it’s clear that our perennial depletion of population through migration has been more than matched by IMMIGRATION into our fair land.
And we’re approaching that ONE MILLION MARK!!

…on the atlas?
Your Eyewitness is old enough to remember when the world atlas was covered with pink – representing countries Britain ruled and on which “the sun never set”!! Well, looks like we’re entering a new era where the US gonna be running matters on a host of countries – and your Eyewitness wonders whether cartographers are gonna be colouring them white, red and blue?? And maybe sprinkled with stars??
They’ve already made the key move to “run” Venezuela – by using the British-designed “indirect rule” from back in the day. This uses Indigenous rulers – think Delcy! – and traditional institutions. This started in Nigeria – which not incidentally might just end up in white, red and blue!! The others on the list are interestingly their closest ally Canada – and Greenland which happens to be a colony of Denmark their NATO ally!!
Other parts of the globe might also be renamed in consonance with the new dispensation that started with the “Gulf of Mexico” being renamed the “Gulf of America”!!

…with Cuba?
Cuba holds the record for facing the longest-running sanctions in the world – sixty-eight years!! But looks like after losing their Venezuelan oil supplies, they might just cave in and accept that red, white and blue is their destiny!!