VIEWPOINT:
SHUTTING DOWN THE COUNTRY IS A RUSE
By Prem Misir Ph.D.
We are led to believe today that Guyana is in crisis. What
does a country in crisis look like? Let’s look at
only at a few images of crisis. A country in crisis does
not have fundamental civil rights, like freedom of expression,
freedom of movement, freedom of assembly, etc. A country
in crisis does not have a positive economic growth rate,
an increase in per capita income, and increased tax-free
allowances. A country in crisis does not have good education
and health outcomes. A country in crisis does not have a
low to moderate debt burden and a stable exchange rate of
its currency. Guyana can boast of having all the aforementioned.
Therefore, Guyana is not in crisis. Consider the great
debt burden, devaluation of the currency, extremely high
real interest rates, a credit squeeze, and spiraling interest
rate, inflation and speculative trading activities, etc.,
that accompanied the People’s Progressive Party/Civic
(PPP/C) Administration in 1992. Review how the PPP/C has
provided, in some cases, substantial remedies for the country’s
social and economic ills.
The great debt burden
Further, we need to really understand how a poor country
services a foreign debt in excess of US$2 billion and the
consequences of coping with a large debt. The PPP/C inherited
this debt in 1992. Servicing this debt required 105% of
the Government’s current revenue; this servicing of
the foreign debt was reduced to 90% of current revenue in
1993. Sir Alister McIntyre in his 1989 report for the Commonwealth
Study Group said that Guyana’s high debt service ratio
was inconsistent with sustained economic growth. The implication
is that many programs for sustained human development were
sacrificed at the altar of pruning the national debt.
Preliminary estimates in 2002 place the total foreign debt
at US$1.3 million, reduced from US$2 billion. Due to adequate
management of the debt burden, today, education constitutes
17.2% of the Budget; health 8% of the Budget. These are
significant developments compared to the entire social services
consuming a mere 8% in 1992. Given that Guyana has experienced
real positives in the economy, why is this attempt to shut
down the country? Some semblance of an answer to the shutdown
on Wednesday and Thursday, may very well lie with the opposition’s
campaign of hostility against the People’s Progressive
Party (PPP) Government in the 1961-64 era.
The 1961-64 destabilizing factors
Clive Thomas once referred to the previous regime’s
terms in office as having produced a crisis in all sectors
of society. This country certainly is nowhere near a Thomas’
crisis dimension, despite sustained attempts by some forces
to destabilize the society. These destabilizing factors
are quite similar to the 1961-1964 period.
The PPP in 1961 won 20 of the 35 seats, People’s
National Congress (PNC) 11, and United Force (UF) 4. The
PNC then orchestrated a campaign of hostility. This campaign,
to name only a few elements, included numerous election
petitions against PPP candidates, squatting by Burnham and
other PNC legislators in front of the gates of the Public
Buildings to prevent the Governor from entering, and hostile
and violent protests, and riots and fire in 1962, under
the ruse of the PPP Budget embodying new taxation provisions.
The opposition’s aim was to destabilize the society,
in order to remove the Government.
Anyway, what was so bothersome about the budget? Nicholas
Kaldor, a Cambridge University Economist, recommended the
budgetary provisions. The PNC and its allies asserted that
the budget would reduce disposable income due to the tax
burden on workers. Estimates suggested that the cost-of-living
index would have experienced an increase of only 1 percent
that was less than the advantages to be gained from the
overall development program to which the budget was attuned.
The Kaldor Budget attempted to end the outflow of capital,
eliminate tax loopholes, stop tax evasion, and impose taxes
on capital gains, gifts, and net wealth. The tax system
then was prejudicial to the advantage of the wealthy and
to the disadvantage of the poor. The Kaldor Budget intended
to correct this deficiency. Clearly, the PNC opposition
and its allies used the budget as an excuse to destabilize
the country. This ploy to bring down the PPP Government
was attempted again in the next year.
In 1963, the ruse for the campaign of hostility was the
Labor Relations Bill. This Bill was fairly similar to the
one introduced in 1953 when Burnham was part of the PPP
Government. The Bill, among its provisions, catered for
a secret ballot of workers through which the union securing
a majority would eventually become the recognized and official
union. The 80-day strike called by the TUC followed with
participation from the PNC, the UF and business enterprises,
and was tainted with violence and numerous incitements to
racial hatred.
I refer to the 1961-64 period because the campaign of hostility
against the PPP Government was primarily aimed at bringing
down that Administration. Is the current campaign against
the PPP/C Government any different today? The Guyanese people
will decide.
The Private Sector Commission
The Private Sector Commission’s Annual Report for
2001 noted that Guyana’s economy is performing satisfactorily,
despite the post-elections violence on the economy. The
Report said, “…Guyana’s economy has been
hard-hit by some negative outcomes…These hardships
include floods, dry weather, unstable political climate,
low foreign direct investment (FDI), and a few financial
problems. However, despite the few negative happenings in
our economy, Guyana’s economy has shown some positive
signs…” The Private Sector Commission, among
other bodies, points to some positives in the economy. How
then is Guyana in a crisis? Many sectors in the country
are just fine.
Government’s crime-fighting measures
However, the current crime wave has dominated the thinking
of Guyanese, and is destroying a sense of the distance they
have traveled in pursuit of excellence in nation building.
What is the reality? Since February 23, 2002, a total of
55 persons have been killed, 13 law enforcement officers
and 42 civilians. This is an unwarranted situation. What
has the PPP/C Government done? Whatever is being done will
never be enough so long as the crime wave continues.
The Government’s crime-fighting initiatives
announced on June 7, this year, include the following:
1. A complete reform of the Intelligence Sector is underway.
2.A specialized training center, focusing on modern anti-crime
tactics and methods, for police and other law enforcement
personnel, will be set up.
3.· A special crime unit modeled on the ‘SWAT
Team’ will soon become a reality.
4. Community policing groups now have a committed unit within
the Guyana Police Force for the purposes of funding, equipment,
etc.
5. Amendments to the crime laws have been passed.
6. The issuance of gun licenses is being fast-tracked, especially
for the business community.
Currently, there are Joint Police-Army task forces involved
in intelligence gathering and special operations. The Army
personnel assist the police in working the highways, villages
and backlands. The process of National Consultations on
Crime, involving the major stakeholders, is now completed.
The results of these Consultations will further inform and
enhance the strategy and methods of law enforcement.
Political link to the criminality
Amid Government’s attempts at crime fighting, we should
not lose sight of the perception that there is some political
link to the current criminality, and indeed, this compounds
the criminal problem. However, the Guyanese people need
to see the crime scenario in all its linkages and manifestations.
A few examples are:
1. A senior People’s National Congress/Reform (PNC/R)
central executive member said that it “is in the business
of trying to get the government of the day out of office.
There is nothing wrong with any statements which say that
as an opposition party, we are attempting to remove the
government.”
2. A national newspaper headline read, “Raphael Trotman
had sparked furor when he had declared that the PNC/R should
take responsibility for the July 3 invasion of the Office
of the President.”
3 . The ‘kith and kin’ politics, referring to
African ethnicity, was used by the PNC/R Leader at the 1997
election.
4.. Jerome Khan, a PNC/R Member of Parliament, cited the
case of a senior ranking person of the PNC/R, as suggesting
that attacks against East Indians will produce positive
outcomes.
5. The statement by the PNC/R of making the country ungovernable
still is being utilized..
6. Use of the ‘slow fire, more fire’ phrase
by the PNC/R during the last election campaign.
7.“Shaka lives” and “Five For Freedom”
leaflets inciting violence against Guyanese. The “Shaka
lives” pamphlet sees the five bandits as heroes while
the “Five For Freedom” leaflet indicates that
the bandits have targeted all Government officials, police
officers, and their families.
8. There is evidence of a PNC/R electoral candidate for
the 2001 election inciting violence.
9. Information on other aspects of domestic terrorism (see
GINA Website).
Further, a GINA online pilot opinion poll shows that when
people are asked whether there is a political link to the
upsurge in crime, 44 said ‘Yes’ and 11 responded
with ‘No’. Again, on the question whether the
media have contributed to an increase in crime, 12 respondents
said ‘Yes’ and 4 said ‘No’. While
there is limited scientific precision in this poll, we still
need to further review this political link to criminality.
Shutdown, a destabilizing factor
The Government is vigorously addressing the Guyana crime
issue, and at the same time factoring the political link,
among others, in the resolution process. Shutting down the
country only exacerbates the crime wave, and such irrational
and illogical action plays right into the hands of those
hell bent in bringing down a democratically-elected Government.
This sort of action happened before, as the campaign of
hostility against the PPP Government in 1962 and 1963, demonstrates.
The Guyanese people must see this political link to the
criminality for what it is.
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