If there was any doubt about the brutality of the PPPC and whether they are deadly serious about maintaining and wielding power in spite of the opposition majority in parliament, you only have to pay attention to the events unfolding in Georgetown today.

The cunning and ruthless PPPC seized upon the AFC’s recommendation to cut “fat cat” salaries from the budget in order to pay for pension increases, by immediately lying to the Guyanese people about the content and intent of the AFC recommendations.

According to a facebook post by Gerhard Ramsaroop, “The cuts proposed by the AFC target only those on super salaries, not any of the ordinary workers (drivers, secretaries, cleaners, etc). The PPP has established a massive contract system to circumvent the traditional public service so that they can install their own loyalists (friends and family), often paid hefty sums. For example, at the Office of the President, Ms Gail Texeira earns in excess of G$900,000 per month and Mr Odinga Lumumba, close to $700,000.”

While a few friends, relatives and cohorts of the PPPC Ministers enjoy whopping salaries (by Guyana standards), an old age pensioner in Guyana must make do with G$8,100 per month (US$40.00). “Moreover, the Gov’t claims it cannot substantially increase the pay of ordinary public servants, nor lower VAT. But billions of dollars are available for contract workers. “

The PPPC however; refuse to be inconvenienced by truth, and they immediately took to the taxpayer funded channel 28 airways last night to spew their lies and propaganda while with forked tongue they reached out to engage the opposition in budget talks.

Sadly, today while the opposition budget talks were in progress, the PPPC Ministers began mass mobilsation of public servants.  They sent govt. buses to some ministries to transport staff to public buildings to protest against the AFC proposed cuts.

Specifically, all staff of ministries were told to assemble outside of Parliament at 12:15 pm today and were also being told participation was compulsory. Information we received in our office indicated that many staff members were very reluctant about going there and became increasingly worried about the repercussions if they refused to go.

In addition, the Public Service Ministry issued a directive for all Foreign Affairs, Tourism, Culture and Education ministries employees to be a part of “protection action” in solidarity with contract workers who the government says will be affected by the budgetary cuts proposed by the AFC.  Minister of Education Priya Manickchand is quoted as saying that, “some 259 contract employees from her ministry will be directly affected should AFC move to do the same in her ministry.”

There is no question that the order to protest is illegal.  Additionally, the PPPC’s goal is to take the eyes of Guyanese citizens off of the more than 3000 Linden citizens who are protesting lack of jobs, proposed increase of electricity rates and poor infrastructure investment in Linden.

Brutalfacts seeks once again to warn the opposition about trusting the words of this brutal PPPC regime.  The opposition is urged to vote down the budget and reopen negotiations for a more inclusive budget which addresses the vision of a new Guyana and which pays attention to the needs of those with the least among us.  This corrupt regime will only interpret the gentlemanly and conciliatory tone offered by the opposition leader as weakness.  The people of Guyana count on the opposition for change, for meaningful change.  The opposition must stand up to this brutal regime and be counted.  The people of Guyana insist on it.

The arrogant Ashni Singh had a chance to defend his wretched budget to the parliament on April 17^th, 2012; a budget which promised lots of bribes, payoffs and contracts for the FOPPPC (friends of the PPPC government) gang in Guyana but reflected very little vision for a new tomorrow, and very little investment in the people of Guyana.  He did so with all of the arrogance, deceit and entitlement the nation of Guyana has come to expect from the PPPC party over the past 19 years.  This deceitful man is beneath contempt, and he is yet to answer for a long list of evils perpetrated on the citizens of Guyana.  To begin, he must explain to the Guyanese people, why his wife; the most senior accountant in the Auditor General’s office, is sitting in a key position of influence with an unqualified and incompetent Auditor General who has been acting for the past 7 years.

Brutal facts will never forget the PPPC’s incompetence, corruption, class warfare and savagery meted out to the Guyanese people since their political reign.  Additionally, there is no doubt, that Ashni Singh has been the brain; albeit the corrupt brain, behind the PPPC vision for Guyana and we are aghast at the words of our most esteemed but sadly out of touch, Finance Minister in parliament yesterday.

For those who continue to sing his praises, we urge you to listen again as he attempts to convince the suffering Guyanese citizens that 16% VAT rate does not adversely impact the lives of poor people in Guyana.  This could not be made more clear than in his multiple examples of how the 16% rate is affecting the hypotical “he”.  Ashni the great intellect should run his hypothetical on a single mother of 4 struggling to make ends meet in a family where every dollar counts. Tell her that 16% VAT is not strangling her family.

Wielding his Phd degree in thievery, he stood up in front of parliament and for 90 minutes dodged, defended and rationalized the miserable failings of his hapless party.  The Guyanese citizens deserve better and if the opposition, for one minute believes that this brutal regime intends to share governance, compromise or even entertain their ideas, then they will surely have to answer to the Guyanese citizens when they gullibly fail to act decisively and swiftly to dismantle the corrupt PPPC budget as it stands.

At the end of the day, Ashni Singh still has to answer the following questions
- Why is his wife the most influential person in the Auditor General’s office; an office responsible for being the check and balance to his own Ministry of Finance, on behalf of the Guyanese people?

-          Why are the military forces underfunded, thus allowing citizens to continue to suffer security fears?

-      Why did he choose this budget to burden the Linden community with a vicious increase in electricity rates?

-          Why is education underfunded in Guyana and why are citizens getting no value for money?

-          Why are public servants underpaid – teachers, police, firefighters

-          Why are youth recreation facilities nonexistent?

-          Why are there no jobs for the people of Guyana?

-      Why is UG underfunded and has the PPPC infiltrated their advisory board with political hacks who have no understanding of how to run a university system

-          Why is the VAT still so high?

-          Where are the billions of taxpayer dollars lost to corruption and nepotism allowing FOPPPCG (friends of PPPC government) to benefit

In the final analysis, even after his insincere weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth in parliament yesterday, there must be no mistaking the intent of this 2012 budget.  The purpose is to clearly enforce a caste system in Guyana, where the elite FOPPPCG control all of the assets and where the poor and working class are so busy and tired trying to make ends meet that they are unable to fight to change the status quo.

The citizens of Guyana must not allow this to happen.  Lindeners must not allow this to happen.  Poor people of all races must not allow his to happen.  The opposition must not allow this to happen.  The PPPC must listen, compromise and change their corrupt ways.  The people must insist on it.

When Guyanese intellectuals come down from ”the mount” to pronounce, they often do so in fine style.  Although their accomplishments make us proud, we worry about the judgment they exercise in picking the battles to publically fight.  Two of them have recently sought to defend the indefensible with published articles displaying varying degrees of skill in the art of written masturbation, conflation of issues and convoluted logic while attempting to come to Henry Greene’s defense.

Adam Harris and Wrickford Dalgetty recently authored publications which were woefully short on facts, logic and judgment in choosing to defend the embattled Police Commissioner Henry Greene; who has been accused of raping a young woman who came to him for help in his capacity as Chief of Police.  Their vigorous defense also included a circling of the wagons around the compromised Acting CJ Ian Chang whose dealings with the underworld are legendary and often whispered among those in the legal fraternity in Guyana.

Legally speaking
There is extensive case law reviewing applications for prohibition of prosecution. These have; to a large degree been discouraged, primarily on the basis that an applicant’s grievance can be accommodated at the Court of trial. Courts have ruled inter alia that for an applicant to succeed in having a prosecution prohibited, an applicant must do more than merely invoke a remote, fanciful or theoretical possibility that exculpatory evidence at one time existed.     He or she must establish a real risk of an unfair trial.

The decision whether to prosecute in an individual case lies at the very heart of the prosecutorial function. The decision can have enormous consequences for the accused person, the injured party and society at large. In most functioning democracies, the question of whether to prosecute an individual case is a matter for the DPP’s discretion and, evolving law and constitutional arrangements have provided the DPP with partial immunity from judicial review. Some Courts have concluded that a “special protection” attaches to the DPP’s decision to prosecute or not prosecute. We are thus forced to surmise the real basis for Chang’s decision to proceed with this obtuse judicial excursion.

In defending Chang’s ill-advised ruling, Dalgetty was so sure that, “Mr. Greene would be exonerated in a pre-trial court of law – a totally different construction from the court of public opinion and emotion” that he made his case to the Guyanese public from his perch on high without regard to precedent, facts or logic or any empathy or understanding for the plight of poor and abused women in Guyana.

Sadly our intellectual mounted a construction that was hollow, and without foundation in law.  We will say without reservation that we are not aware that Mr. Dalgetty is a legal practitioner and a legitimate commentator on matters legal but since he was confident in his pronouncement which was widely distributed in Guyana, we are forced to address the matter in kind, in order to clear up any potential murkiness created by Mr.  Dalgetty’s muddy thrashing and swirling in the sea of law in Guyana.

It is important to note that we are not making the case that judicial review, in some exceptional situations, is not permissible but precedent is clear about what these situations should be.  More compelling, however is the public policy that clearly frowns on judicial review in this regard.

Public Policy
In looking at the underpinning public policy that serves to buttress this special protection and immunity of the DPP, there are four fundamental arguments:

1. The constitutionally -enshrined separation of powers – Advocates of this view believe that the separation of powers doctrine generally prevents judicial interference with a prosecutor’s broad discretion to initiate and conduct criminal prosecutions.
2. The limit of court resources – The argument that prosecutorial and judicial resources stretches beyond acceptable limits if frequent judicial review of charging decisions are allowed.
3. The facilitation of legal enforcement – This policy argument is what some commentators refer to as the “chilling effect of legal enforcement justification”.
4. Unnecessary disclosure of law enforcement strategies – this policy objection militating against judicial intervention in the idea of close judicial scrutiny of a prosecutorial decision may reveal law enforcement strategies thus undermining effective crime control.

The compelling public policy that frowns on this review is significant and thus the decision to proceed in this direction raises fundamental questions with respect to Chang’s motivation to ignore well established public policy arguments and points to serious questions as to his decision to flout this public policy framework in his haste to please his political masters.

Henry Greene’s established connection to the drug trade and Chang’s alleged connection to Simels and others in the Roger Khan network create a palpable notion that this ruling and the CJ’s decision to entertain this hearing have less to do with the established legal justifications for review and more with other overarching relationships well outside of the purview of the current Chief Justice.  This review was not necessary as it is an established fact that a trial judge maintains at all times, the duty to ensure due process and a fair trial.  Greene of all persons should have had the courage to demonstrate his confidence in a legal system of which he is an integral part and not resort to this questionable process to tarnish the scales of justice.

It is thus our contention that Dalgetty’s foray into this rather important legal matter seems to be guided solely by the self-adoration one may derive by aligning one’s view with a putative legal luminary such as Chang.  The dilemma for Dalgetty and Harris and others who seek to buttress this joke of a result is that this legal result seems to be tainted by political expediency and lacks the requisite scholarly underpinning to withstand analytical scrutiny.

Lacks Scholarly underpinning
Indeed, Chang’s rush to conflate the Strauss Kahn case with this matter points to the desperation implicit in this decision and collapses Chang’s status to one of a jurisprudential “pork-knocker” rather than the scholarly pedestal which he so desperately craves.

A breakdown of Dalgetty’s case
Dalgetty asserts that, “A trier of fact must rely on circumstantial evidence……” .  The sad truth is that the sum result of this travesty of justice it that Chang subverted the legal process by denying a process in which a trier of fact could reflect on and examine the evidence in the case.  Surely, Chang could not be considered as a trier of fact in this instance as he has excluded the victim’s participation in the process…”

Dalgetty suggests also that “circumstantial evidence must be buttressed by the applications of inference and reasonableness based on the human experience”……  We believe that by subverting the process and denying the victim her day in court, this process has been usurped in its entirety by allowing the CJ to rule on this matter devoid of the established legal process for examining/testing the credibility of the instant claims.  In addition, Chang’s lewd and shockingly perverse obsession with the victim’s orgasms and her inability to provide for her children demonstrated a new low in Guyana’s legal jurisprudence.

The people must intervene to remove bias from the judical system
Brutalfacts views Chang’s actions as dangerous and a subversion of the rule of law.  His was a sloppy, yet overreaching attempt to move from, what in theory is that of a role of neutral /impartial actor, to that of a burdened advocate, resulting in a further tarnishing of the scale of justice in Guyana, and Guyanese citizens should find this unacceptable.

We maintain that this decision just will not stand.  It is bad law and it is bad for Guyana!   It defies judicial logic, precedent and smacks of political interference and mischief.  The citizens of Guyana must not allow this travesty.  In protest and in the courts, we must return democracy to Guyana and we must return judicial independence to the people of Guyana.  We must all say in one voice that the PPPC government will no longer be permitted to use the courts to exact punishment on its enemies or to exclude friends from the judicial process which all Guyanese citizens have to endure.

Women of Guyana must again endure another disgusting indignity.  As if it were not enough that they are treated like second hand citizens in the country of their birth, that they are objectified as nothing more than sexual tools, that they work the worst jobs for the lowest wages, that they live overwhelmingly in poverty and in crowded homes and that their children are not properly educated and their girls are routinely targeted for underage sex; their worst fears have now been confirmed.  Fears that powerful men, especially those affiliated with the PPPC government can rape them with impunity.

Women in Guyana are nothing more than objects; objects which serve at the behest of powerful men.  They are largely beholden to these men and many are tremendously grateful and suicideally loyal.  Many powerful women serve as staunch defenders of the indefensible.  They use their quick wit, their exceptional intellect and their motherly instincts to maim and malign other women who would dare speak the truth about abusive, inept, unscrupulous and immoral leaders.  And so in Guyana, many women’s rights organizations are left to limp along without the support and loyalty of some of the most powerful and able women of Guyana.  They fail to speak with one voice and powerful men are given a pass for their evil deeds.

Guyanese women make up more than 50% of the population and if they have not seen fit by now to do away with the idiocy of racial voting and blind loyalty to unscrupulous and undeserving leaders, then they deserve every bit of contempt they receive.

How in god’s name can women make up a majority in a democratic country, yet sit by and watch as disgusting leaders sexually molest young girls (this is routine), watch as women are abused and murdered by their spouses almost daily, watch as a culture which endorses mass infidelity, an acceptance of “beating of women”, and sexual favors for survival and advancement in the workplace.

It is beneath contempt that women’s rights organizations continue to wallow in divisions and insecurity and racial animus and have not seen fit to work together to make their voices heard and to insist on a national conversation, a national campaign and a movement for real change.

Where is Priya Manickchand?, where is Gail Texiera?, Where is Jennifer Wesford?, Where are the rest of the women in the PPPC, the PNCR?, the AFC, the APNU, Red thread, etc.  Where is civil society?  Where are the women of the bar?

We say, “Shame on you all if you allow this issue to be swept under the rug without massive protest.’  Henry Greene is a known rapist and sexual predator and he has also earned himself a reputation for his exploits and involvement with narco-trafficking.  The PPPC knows it, Jagdeo knew it, President Ramotar knows it, and everyone knows it, but they also know that he has many secrets for the Jagdeo regime and they just could not afford to leave him out to dry; and so, a young woman was once again sacrificed.

Chief Justice Ian Chang should be ashamed of this ruling, but No one wants to deal with Chang’s own sordid history of corruption.  Chang is a manchurian candidate; nurtured and rewarded through his involvement with notorious narcotics traffickers and facilitated by Jagdeo and the PPPC and thus his role is to rise to give his pay back when called upon to do so.  The opposition in parliament should take note not to expect anything other than support for the PPPC boys in his rulings.

Women of Guyana today find themselves at a major crossroad.  Will they ‘accept and bless’ and curse their own daughters to a life of sexual insecurity and second class citizenship or will they overlook virtual barriers of race and class and culture setup by a male power structure to ensure their continued dominance; and speak out with one voice to legislate and enact an agenda for women’s rights and justice.  Sink or swim, women will have to drive this change because never, ever in history has the oppressor made the decision to change without extreme pressure from those victimized.  In memory of the great women who have gone before us and for the future of our children, women must speak with once voice and say, “NO MORE”.

One year ago as Guyana prepared for elections there was great anticipation. President Jagdeo was constitutionally restricted from seeking a third term; several opposition groupings banded together to create A Partnership for National Unity (APNU); the elections was billed as a change elections. Politicians of all stripes and from both sides of the aisles promised that there would be change and that they were the ones that would deliver that change. November 28th 2011 came with great anticipation and even though many were disappointed with the results, none could deny that the mathematical reality that the election produced was change. All of the players were given what was dubbed a “new dispensation”; a new order; there was a new arrangement; the PPPC controlledthe Executive and the opposition controlled the legislature.

Today almost four months have passed and nothing has changed. After all the hoopla and Political prancing around, this so-called “new dispensation” has yielded nothing of substance for the people; nothing has changed and that is a fact! Guyanese taxpayers who were promised an end to the criminally high 16% VAT are stilled saddled with it, even though the government has appointed a commission to look into it… (Theyare still looking). The politicians and pundits that were vociferous about this issue have all but disappeared. President Jagdeo’s exorbitant salary package that the AFC and theAPNU promised to change on day one in parliament is still in place, and the clock is ticking…No one is talking about this issue and like VAT the silence is deafening. The Guyana Police Force continues to be a cesspool of corruption with poor management and oversight by its parent ministry (Home Affairs). All the negative things that were said about Rohee the Police Force pre-November 28th 2011, are still being said today- Nochange.

Region 10 and several other regions of Guyana are still subject to a communications black-out. The government still controls the air waves in these communities; NCN and the Radio Guyana is the only source of what passes for news. The APNU won this Region and promised to bring change, to this and several issues, but APNU has gone silent on this abuse and the residents continue to suffer; No change! Coastal flooding and the national “garbage crisis” were hot-button topics for both the AFC and theAPNU, both promised that they would address these issues. The people who voted forthem believed them. Today Georgetown is still stink, with its putrid drains and garbageeverywhere; less than one inch of rain fall still floods the entire coast, but the “leaders”who less than a year ago articulated their vision to fix these problems have all but disappeared; many are now “Parliamentarians….more concerned with their entitlements that the peoples business.

The PPPC government continues to rule Guyana as if it is their private plantation. The same goons and thugs roam the corridors of power at the Office of the President.Guyanese are still (once a week) subjected to the condescending attitude of RogerLuncheon. A few of the misfits and incompetents have been replaced but the entire Jagdeo cabinet remains and the new President have yet to show real leadership on any issue. No change! Salaries in the public sector still remain at starvation levels even though all of the parties in and out of government profess to be the representatives of the working man and woman. Contracts are still being awarded to those on the friends and family plan.

Citizens are still being shot and or robbed in broad daylight; No change! The drains are still clogged with Styrofoam and plastics; vagrants still call the pavements around the Parliament building home; The Youth of the nation who were targeted and promised a new and better life, still wonder if that life might be outside the borders of Guyana. Women another group targeted for their votes still suffer at the hands of employers, husbands and society. Our women and girls are daily physically and mentally abused, many relegated to selling their bodies to make a living or attain a promotion; the new dispensation has brought them no change.
So after much hope for a new dawn and promises for a better life for all Guyanese what do we have? Now that the rubber has reached the road and it is time to deliver for the people, where are our leaders? Why have they stopped communicating with us? Why the silence?  When will we experience some relief from these depressing conditions? Where is the change we voted for? When can we expect to enjoy some of the good life that was promised? Where are our leaders?

We intend to sound a warning today to the President, his party and all institutions, segments of the media and the business community that enable “Indian rule” in Guyana.  Stop this madness now! We dislike talking about race, and people who bring it up are quickly labeled as trouble makers, but this is a conversation we must have. Many Indians feel that what is happening in Guyana is okay. The less educated ones believe that after twenty-eight years of PNC rule…is we time now; “Awe pan tap” The more educated and sophisticated Indo- Guyanese who enable the current status quo, are cognizant of the pitfalls of the current tend and know the risk of having a large segment of the population marginalized, but they are willing to take the risk, because they think Indian rule woks to their benefit.

Since 1992 the PPPC has systematically destroyed the African middle class in Guyana. They have removed Africans from positions of influence in the public sector and replaced them with Indians. They have removed Africans from positions of influence on Boards and commissions of major corporations, and until recently they excluded African from representing this country as Diplomats. Economically less than three percent of the population controls the wealth of this nation and they are predominantly Indian. They get all the multi- billion dollar contracts, they get all the opportunities to buy prime lands, they are constantly given an unfair advantage to get ahead on the economic and social ladder and they are all Indian. Take a look at the composition of all the major government controlled institutions, like NCN, GINA, GuySuCo, GPL, GPHA, UG…. and I can go on for the list is endless, and what you find is the absence of Africans in any position of influence. Apart from the top “Negroes” at the Office of the President and the token presence at the Ministerial level, the ethnic cleansing by this PPP government is obnoxious.

Africans in Guyana have been relegated to a permanent underclass, and even the university educated cannot escape the racial marginalization; they cannot find good jobs, and when they do they know that they will never make it to the top, because those slots are reserved for Indians. This is our dirty secret in Guyana, everyone knows it; everyone talks about it and no one does anything about it. Indian rule disregards talent and is not a meritocracy; you are only assured a place by virtue of your heritage. The security forces in Guyana have remained largely populated and controlled by African because in the past Indian youth shied away from these opportunities and were steered by their elder to more lucrative endeavors. However this too is changing and I will predict that within the next ten years if the current trend is not reversed Indian rule in Guyana will be complete (The Police and Army will be headed by Indians).

What is written here today will make many including some of our Indian friends uncomfortable, but those who are honest will admit to the facts.  We have to end this madness or the consequences will be dire.  Guyana will most certainly descend into the depths of a race war. What we have cannot be sustained, President Ramotar cannot continue to sit in his office and sign multibillion dollar contracts to Indian business men, while his $47, 000 per month President Guard and the less fortunate struggle to eke out a living. Students of history are aware of the of the facts; the underclass will eventually rise up and no one will be safe. I appeal to the rational Indians in Guyana and those who will listen; do what you can to get this administration and its enablers to stop this ethnic cleansing now.

To date, the PPPC has destroyed several African communities like Linden, Kwakwani, Buxton, and several villages on the Corentyne. African rice farmers on the Corentyne have been forced out of the industry because the government has refused to maintain their dams and have cut off their water supply. In some villages they have to walk miles to bury their dead because their sideline dams have been blocked. We implore the PPPC  government to stop the madness now before it is too late. Indian rule may last for a few decades but eventually it will crumble on its foundation. Those who cannot learn to live together as brothers; will perish together as fools.

The PPPC’s recent move to the courts in order to win support for their view that they should have the majority on parliamentary committees is yet another devious and calculated move to strengthen their recently weakening hold on absolute power in Guyana. So comfortable have they been in running roughshod over the Guyanese people and the opposition in parliament; for the past 20 years, that they find themselves unable to govern in an environment which requires unity and compromise.

The PPP/C Government intends to make Guyana an ungovernable state which would give them a reason to head back to the polls and this should be unacceptable to all Guyanese. The combined opposition parties have been given an opportunity to mobilise the Guyanese people and to prove that they are not pushovers. The PPPC must not be allowed to get away with this blatant abuse of power. To their credit, the PPP/C understands that total control is needed in order for them to continue unabated with their corrupt practices that enriched a small cabal of friends and cohorts and plunged the rest of the country into growing poverty. The recent elections created an opportunity to move Guyana forward; to create a Guyana where our children and grandchildren would have an equal opportunity to a decent education, decent jobs, and access to lands, improved medical care and the basic necessities that should be afforded by a developing nation.

Citizens of Guyana must fight to end this farce. The opposition parties must be vocal and must rally their supporters to move against this abuse by any means necessary. Citizens must be informed and educated about the consequences of PPPC hegemony in Guyana. Donald Ramotar’s PPPC government is saying, ‘we do not care about your welfare and the development of this country’; While Donald Ramotar has claimed to care about the people of Guyana, with his recent actions, he has been proven to be a liar. The people of Guyana must not succumb to the PPPC’s nefarious plan to make this issue about race. In Guyana, all ethnicities have suffered and suffered very badly under this PPP/C Government, so the call to action is to people of all races. We; as a people, have to stand up against this evil regime, because opportunities in Guyana are not just for government officials or their friends and family. Opportunities belong to all the people of Guyana.

The select committee should be a reflection of the composition of the National Assembly and the choices which were made by Guyanese at the November 28th 2012 General Election. The logic offered by the PPPC to justify their claim of 5 seats requires a suspension of disbelief to accept. The PPPC move to the court is a threat to democracy, the same democracy the PPP/C Government claims to have brought back to Guyana. However it is becoming evident that democracy which does not work in their favour is not worth having.

This is either the biggest attempted cover-up since Watergate, or Clement Rohee, Ivelaw Whitaker and the entire Police Force top brass are the most incompetent executives in the cooperative Republic of Guyana. If my recollection serves me right, this story broke just after the Parliamentary opposition refused to rubber stamp the government’s supplementary expenditures presented for approval in Parliament by the Minister of Finance. At that time we heard that over $90 M was allocated to the Police force through the Ministry of Home Affairs for use by the Police to buy rations and pay for extra traveling etc during the elections period.

Immediately after this information was disseminated, several senior ranks including two Division Commanders shared with the press that they had not received one cent of the missing 90 million. One of the Divisional Commanders David Ramnarine stated that he was told to approach the business community as a source of food for his men. Ramnarine’s story was corroborated by other commanders who also said that they had received the same instructions form Force Headquarters (Eve-Leary).

At the annual Officer conference just concluded, this matter was not on the agenda, and the President who addressed the senior leaders of the Force did not touch this issue. The Minister of Home Affairs after three weeks of silence never sought to clarify this matter. In his address to the conference, Rohee instead chose to issue warnings and a veiled threat to officers who spoke to the media. Now at this 9th hour, the Force releases a statement conveniently “accounting” for all of the “missing” funds.

It is apposite to note that we are not speaking here about ninety thousand dollars or nine hundred thousand dollars. At issue is over ninety million of taxpayer money that was supposedly disbursed from the Home Affairs ministry to the police department. Yet in the early goings the police were silent on this issue; many claiming that they never received any funds. Commanders are on record stating that they were forced to send ranks home because they had no funds to feed them.

What and who are we to believe?  Why; if the top officials at both the Ministry of Home Affairs and Police Headquarters had the breakdown that was presented today,  did it take so long for them to share it with the public? This matter has been in the press for the past three week, with pundits and politicians demanding answers, yet there were none forthcoming…. The Minister of Home Affairs was asked on numerous occasions about these funds and how and if they were disbursed, and he had no comment. Are we to believe that Clement Rohee is so out of the touch with what goes on at Eve Leary or his own Ministry? Or is this a scandal that needs to be investigated further?

According to the breakdown that was issued today; Asst Commissioner David Ramnarine’s division received over one million dollars, yet Ramnarine said he did not receive one cent of the funds. In at least two of the divisions that were listed, commanders are on record as having to ask members of the business community for assistance while other including commanders from A division which purportedly received over eight million dollars were forced to send ranks home due to limited funds.

It is clear that someone is not telling the truth, and in this instance it is very difficult to disbelieve the officers. The sum that the Force claims to have disbursed is not insignificant.  There is something that just does not feel right here. If there is nothing to hide and the monies were disbursed as indicated in today’s press release, then why did it take over three weeks for the “truth” to be revealed?

Sources close to this publication are telling us that the inner circle at Freedom House, (PPPC HQ) is planning for snap elections in Guyana sometime in the next six to seven months. The Chronicle which serves as the propaganda arm of the ruling party is carrying almost daily letters from the PPPC letter writing mill advocating for new elections to reverse the 2011 results. In the Kaieteur News, Peeping Tom a pro PPPC opinion column has recently joined in the chorus. Taking all of this into consideration (including the President’s own race baiting) the intentions of the Jagdeo/ Ramotar PPPC Cabal is almost transparent.

Dissatisfied that they lost their majority in Parliament, and wanting a return to the old days when everything was under their total control, the PPPC are marching on two fronts. Under the guise of statesmanship and pragmatism, they have entered in to “Tripartite talks” with the opposition. Historically the PPPC have only used “ Talks”  with the opposition as smokescreens or political theatre to achieve their own narrow self interest. Desmond Hoyte and Robert Corbin  can both attest to the  PPPC’s lack of sincerity and political back stabbing  while engaging in this type of subterfuge. This time Tripartite talks are a means to lull the opposition to sleep; put them in a comfortable space; disarm their more militant factions, all the while continuing to conduct business as usual.

While this charade is publicly demonstrated the second front is in full attack mode. Activists and operators are busy at the bottom house level preparing the faithful and telling them to be ready for snap elections. In Region 6 where the PPPC lost  a significant portion of their support to the AFC the racists bottom house rhetoric is brutal and nasty. Indians are being told that Ramjattan sold them out to the black man; They are being told that the AFC and the PNC/APNU are one and that Khemraj pick the black man Trotman over Moses fuh Spekah. Indians are being told that the opposition is threatening the government; that they will close down GuySuCo and a host of other lies too numerous to mention. This is how the base is mobilized and racial cleavage is maintained; this is the PPP’s second front and they are in full attack mode.

The political opposition must not be lulled into any false sense of security, or believe Donald Ramotar when he says that he will not be calling snap elections. The AFC and the APNU should continue to campaign and communicate with the entire electorate in Guyana. They must make it perfectly clear to the PPPC that no elections will be held in Guyana until certain demands are met. They must first demand that the playing field be  leveled; The current system where the PPPC controls the airwaves and the taxpayer subsidized Guyana Chronicle must be corrected to the satisfaction of all parties. All of the OAS post elections recommendations MUST be addressed, starting with GECOM. There must be a major overhaul and reconfiguration at  GECOM; freeing it from the bondage of political interference and budgetary manipulation. The elections commission must be an independent agency, with its own budget.

This must be done before any new elections are called. The Guyana Chronicle must either be reorganized, sold or scrapped. To ask the taxpayers to fund what is essentially a PPPC newspaper is tantamount to eye pass! The opposition must use their leverage in parliament to cut off all government funds to the communication sector unless there is drastic change in the dissemination of information, management and editorial slant. The opposition must also demand that radio licenses be issued fairly and without political favour. Regional licenses must become a priority so that a fair and balanced coverage can be achieved throughout the length and breath of Guyana. These are but a few of the demands that must be met by the Jagdeo/Ramotar government before any elections are met.

Finally the opposition must keep informing the electorate on a daily basis of what is going on, and what they are doing in their name. Public meeting; radio broadcast; television; email; social media, all the tools must be utilized in this effort, nothing must be spared. The PPPC must be made to understand that if they fail to accede to these fundamental demands then every method of political protest would be put on the table and no amount of “talks” would take them off.

They must know that we will not accept another “Bloody Tuesday”, this time there will be consequences. On November 28^th the people of Guyana spoke and they did so loud and clear. They said they wanted us to work together for the good of this nation. They said they were tired of corruption and nepotism; they said they were tired of development that made a small segment of the population rich, while the majority was trapped in an endless cycle of poverty. They voted for change. It is up to us to demand that change, to put an end to Indian Triumphalism and finally be One people One Nation with a common Destiny….anything else is unacceptable!