.. businessman
The newspapers yesterday (Wednesday) were chock full of reports on the fellow they unanimously dubbed as going “berserk” on Middle Street, Georgetown. He ended up killing four persons before he was taken out. For good reason. The ancient Norse warriors, who were the original “berserkers”, worked themselves into a state of rage by eating heavily drugged food – then plunging into battle.
The man was said to be a miner who was high on cocaine – the drug of choice today – and with no apparent reason killed two employees of a taxi service renting his premises. The other two killed were policemen who responded to the berserker’s onslaught. Well all be spending the next few days speculating as to why a presumably sane businessman from a perfectly respectable business family would commit such a horrendous act.
We’re all used to the stereotypes that crimes of this sort are committed by people from poverty stricken backgrounds and dysfunctional families who’re all “messed up”. They take out their frustrations on anyone who comes in their way.
So what do you say about this berserk fella who obviously had it “good”? The point is, anyone could snap and go over the edge – even in the most well adjusted societies. Imagine the possibilities in a country like Guyana where there are leaders who perpetually exhort their followers to vent their anger in protests – even to burn buildings and block bridges.
We have leaders who admit it’s illegal to block a bridge and denying vital supplies into interior communities – but yet are on record for not only encouraging it, but facilitating it as well. And they sit in Parliament and make those same laws for the nation. Where are the leaders that teach their followers to control themselves and use the processes of the law to settle differences? We’re sure in the end well find that the berserk mining businessman was frustrated in some way, shape or form. If he’d been living in a country where people were all encouraged to stick to the straight and narrow, there’s a greater likelihood we wouldn’t have five families in grief tonight.
Yes… the berserkers family’s grieving now also, if you don’t mind. Now, we aren’t daft enough to suggest that the opposition politicians who’ve been creating mayhem in Guyana since the 1960s are directly responsible for the mayhem in Middle Street. But what we’re saying is that everything happens within a context.
And very sadly the opposition has created a context where frustrations are encouraged to be settled through violence rather than through discussion. For this they must take the blame.
…. youths
And if we want to be honest, we have to place the Hot Skull youth gang of Albouystown, Georgetown in the same context of acting outside the law when frustration kicks in. Everyone knows that Albouystown’s a depressed community… but there’s a whole lotta depressed communities across the country.
Have you noticed that these criminal gangs spring up only where the opposition stirs them up? As far back as the 1960s, wasn’t it the opposition that unleashed the “choke and rob” phenomenon – in the form of youths from Albouystown, mugging People’s progressive Party (PPP) supporters who’d “come to town”?? Trouble is, they spawned a whole new urban sub-culture that’s become self perpetuating.
During their 28 years in the government, what did the People’s National Congress (PNC) do for the youths of that depressed community? Nothing… nada, zilch. Just waited for another generation to spring up for them to use as cannon fodder in their slow fyaah… mo fyaah in the past decade.
When the effects of the torpedoed Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (Amendment) Bill (AMLCFT) kicks in, be prepared for more violence springing from the increased frustrations.
… politicians
So we return to these politicians who are bent on stirring up the pot of anger in Guyana. Hey… we know that things in Guyana are hard for some people. But how does precipitating a financial squeeze help matters?