Still… One Guyana!!

AS your Eyewitness revels in his post-independence glow that came from that shot fired from Fort Zeelandia, he feels that Pres Ali was totally vindicated in his commitment to One Guyana! Now, this isn’t just simply looking for a silver lining behind the dark clouds that hover perpetually over our precarious existence, but just emphasizing something we shouldn’t take for granted! Look at some other divide societies like Yugoslavia, which used to be showcased as a model for ethnic groups living together!! They split is 1991 and- like Humpy Dumpty – haven’t been put back together again!!
Yet – when you consider all we’ve been forced to put up with, just surviving as a nation ain’t been easy. Remember one of the extremist founders of the PNC insisting back in 1962 that if we couldn’t get along then we should split Guyana I to fragments?!! Even Burnham thought that was off the wall and threw him out from the PNC. However, he returned to his PNC home and fervently supported them during the ethnic riots that amounted to full scale civil war. But we survived as ONE Guyana.
Most of the credit for that feat gotta go to the fortitude of the PPP under Cheddi’s leadership. How many times didn’t he eat humble pie for the sake of our unity following Burnham’s rigging of the elections in 1968, 1973 and 1980 to hold on to power illegally? He was constantly hounded by his supporters – who were being crushed by the jackboots of the Burnhamite dictatorship – to “do something”. But he always demurred saying that a bloodbath wasn’t worth it. He wanted One Guyana!!
The price paid by those supporters was unbelievable after the depredations of kick-down-the-door bandits and several goon squads – like the House of Israel. And starvation. Hundreds of thousands of them fled to whichever country would have them – the USA, Canada, Suriname, Venezuela, TT and all the other Caribbean islands!! Then came the full-scale attacks on the state after the PPP returned democracy. We gotta give Jagdeo his jacket for taking the bandits on and winning for One Guyana!!
The PPP has never been given enough credit for the sacrifices it and its supporters made for the survival of this nation called Guyana. After the 2020 rigging attempt by “kinder, gentler” PNC strongman Granger, he callously unleashed ethnic violence in West Berbice! Pres Ali refused to be baited and instead launched an inclusive development program for all Guyanese that has delivered performatively to take us the furthest into what it means to be really One Guyana!!
Let’s not be distracted by those who will oppose for the sake of opposing!!

…not having enough conversations
Even though we’ve been a state for 60 years, some people complain we ain’t got enough in common as a people to call ourselves “a nation”. Your Eyewitness thinks we gotta examine that claim! And let’s go beyond talking about the foods we eat – roti, metemge, pepper pot, low-mein and garlic pork – or the songs we sing – soca and chutney. What about our political OBSESSIONS??
Even before we got independence, we Mudlanders were said to be politically “precocious”. Meaning, of course, we were “fo’ce-ripe” in matters political! One of the problems, though, is we don’t talk enough politics TO EACH OTHER to discover our commonalities there! Most of the talk is still done under “bottom houses” – meaning with our segregated pattern of living – we’re talking in echo chambers to “our own”. With social media and everyone having a smart phone as arm extensions nothing has really changed, since we’re now only talking to “our friends” and cussing out the “other”!!
How about those long promised “national conversations”?

…haunted?
Pressie’s foray to Fort Island triggered a thought as to why our road to the airport’s still bogged down. Used to be Dutch Plantations with their cemeteries near the roadway – and we’re disturbing the Dutchmen!!
Need to libate some High Wine!!