The new year is here, complete with wishes for a “Happy New Year” from the two major political parties and Presidential Candidate of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic, Dr Irfaan Ali. According to the PPP/C, the new year is a chance to rebuild Guyana after the wreckage left by the incumbent government.
The Party in its New Year message to the nation said that over the course of 2019, Guyanese saw for themselves the desperation of A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) to hang on to power by using “every legal and arithmetic trick at their disposal”, after falling to a No-Confidence Motion since 2018.
“Happily, by the end of 2019, their desperate attempts have finally been exhausted, and they have been left with no choice but to name a date on which the Guyanese people will be given a chance to elect a government of their choice,” the PPP said in its statement.
“The dawn of 2020 is also an occasion for guarded optimism in our country. We start this year as the world’s newest oil-producing nation. In order for the benefits of this development to be enjoyed by all of the Guyanese people, the gross mismanagement of the sector by the incumbent APNU/AFC Government will need to be remedied.”
Touching on the coalition’s legacy, PPP noted that they have failed to put in place an effective regulatory framework for oil and gas and botched efforts to renegotiate the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) after Guyana found oil.
“By ensuring a truly diversified and robust economy, Guyana will soon be joining the fold of prosperous nations of the world and, with good government, every single Guyanese person will benefit from this prosperity. For this promise to be realised, the Guyanese people will be required to make an important choice in March 2020.
The incumbent government continues to engage in shallow sloganeering, promising a “decade of development”. The emptiness of this promise is best illustrated by their abject failure to deliver on that other shallow slogan that they have been parroting for the past five years, as “the good life” is yet to be enjoyed by anybody but themselves and their close cronies.”
The PPP, therefore, called on Guyanese to “join hands in the collective task of rebuilding Guyana from the destruction and disunity sowed over the past five years.” The Party also expressed hope that 2020 will be a year in which the highest standards of democratic norms are upheld through the conduct of free, fair, and peaceful elections. The Party is also hopeful that good governance and responsible economic management will be restored.
Binds us together
Meanwhile, PPP Presidential Candidate Dr Irfaan Ali used his New Year’s message to praise Guyanese for the characteristics he witnessed during his travels on the campaign trail. According to him, Guyanese are resilient and their potential must be more fully unlocked in the New Year.
“Fellow Guyanese, there is more that binds us together than pulls us apart. Guyanese here and in the Diaspora are overflowing with ideas and drive to make our country better. As we stand on the precipice of a new decade, let us look to the future with a deep and abiding hope that tomorrow can be better than today”.
“Let us unlock the potential of the Guyanese people by giving them land, a quality education, affordable and available healthcare, lower taxes and an investment in the creation of jobs and other opportunities for all our people,” Ali also said, going on to call for unity and wishing everyone a happy New Year.
“Decade of development”
In President David Granger’s New Year message, he emphasised that 2020 would be the start of Guyana’s “decade of development”. Granger promised that education and healthcare, infrastructure, energy supply and the economy would improve.
“We can look forward to living in a country which enjoys high levels of growth and human development and with accountable government and greater equality. Constitutional reform will allow for the easier resolution of political differences,” he said.
“Citizens can be assured that their communities will be safer and that borders will be more secured. The productive sectors will be more resilient by receiving increased support to drive economic development”.
Touching on elections, which, according to the Constitution, should have been held since March 2019 but are now scheduled for March 2, 2020, the President promised “free, fair and credible” elections and assured that the security forces would ensure that public order and stability prevail during and after.
“The year 2020 will be an unforgettable year. It will demand diligent and dutiful service from all to attain the common good… I extend best wishes to every Guyanese for a happy and prosperous New Year – one which promises to be the most exciting and exhilarating in our nation’s history.”
