Dear Editor,
In a few days’ time, it will be two years since His Excellency David Granger was elected President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana. He promised Guyanese that, with his APNU/AFC Government, he would improve their everyday lives and meet their basic needs. 
The evidence so far suggests otherwise, as the President and his Ministers have been making many trips abroad at taxpayers’ expense, rather than concentrate on the mandate they have been given to solve the many problems facing the nation.
For example, the President stated recently that he “has no intention of shutting down the sugar industry”; yet, since taking office, nearly 1,800 sugar workers have lost their jobs, and several processing facilities have ceased operating. GuySuCo is financially bankrupt, and the APNU/AFC Government has no strategy for its consolidation and diversification, in order to make it again viable.
Instead of seriously fulfilling his mandate to govern competently and solve the nation’s many problems, President Granger seems to take every opportunity to escape his duties by making expensive overseas trips at taxpayers’ expense, under the pretext that they are in the national interest. His recent State Visits, using chartered aircraft and being accompanied by an entourage of who’s who, attests to this; as nothing of significance was accomplished. This should be of great concern to all Guyanese, as The Bahamas is a group of islands that have no economic benefit to offer Guyana, except sand and sunshine; while Great Britain cannot make any trade deal or investment in Guyana without approval from the European Union.
So what has President Granger really achieved from his latest expensive ‘wild goose’ overseas trips? He should level with the Guyanese people and let them know.
Finally, it is ironic that President Granger and the APNU/AFC Government are spending millions of scarce dollars on useless overseas trips while, in an attempt to raise revenue, they have imposed a hefty tax on private education and education materials. The local public school system is a dismal failure, as its teachers badly need training, infrastructure is falling apart, and resources are lacking for basic teaching materials. It is under this dark educational cloud that concerned parents have scraped together whatever little resources they have to give their children the opportunity for a quality education, to acquire the knowledge and skills which would enable them to progress in a rapidly changing environment. The APNU/AFC Government, instead of imposing a crippling tax burden on private education, should have set up standards and monitor that these are met. After all, the Minister of Education, like I do, knows fully well that had it not been for private education in our early life, we probably would still be struggling to make a living planting rice and/or grazing cows in the lowlands of the Mahaica River.
Yours truly,
Charles Sohan
