Category: Eyewitness

…corruption It’s rather rich for the PNC types to tag the PPP as being irredeemably corrupt when in only three years there have been more acknowledged instances of corruption than in the entire 23 years of the PPP regime. Sure the PPP had instances of corruption – that’s inevitable any government not made up of angels. But if the PPP ACTUALLY were so corrupt, how come there hasn’t been a SINGLE conviction in three years? And it hasn’t been for lack of trying!! There were the FIFTY forensic audits; there…

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…parties in Guyana One of the founders of ANUG – A New and United Guyana – (to be launched this week) commented in his blog which is reprinted by the Stabber News and then regularly reprinted as a news item (talk about publicity!!): “Political parties are mushrooming, as is the custom when elections are close.” Since we’ve tried and failed to grow “real mushrooms”, maybe it might be more appropriate to say, “political parties are sprouting like ‘jumbie umbrellas’”!! Our colloquial reference would convey not only the accelerated growth cycle…

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Satiricus was confused. Which, he admitted, wasn’t an unusual state of mind for him. All this jumping around from limb to limb by his old KFC party to stay alive – after they’d been voted out – was making his head spin. He knew what he had to do: get as fast as he could to the Back Street Bar, for his first drink after the New Year excesses. “Ai Sato! Me t’ink like yuh get laas’ or somet’ing!” exclaimed Bungi, as he spied Satiricus approaching the table. “E’ wife…

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…“constitutional crisis”?? Your Eyewitness has noted with more than a little consternation that some commentators are talking about a “constitutional crisis” in Guyana, after the no-confidence motion was validly passed. There certainly is a crisis in Guyana, but it has absolutely nothing to do with the constitution. What we have is a naked power grab by the PNC after the Constitution most clearly told them it’s “sayonara” time. The fact that the coalition has resorted to the Courts cannot undermine the clear language of the Constitution on what is a…

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…to a whimper in the courts When Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo filed the PPP’s no-confidence motion against the PNC-led coalition Government, there were hoots of derision from the Government benches. “Bring it on!!” screamed PM Nagamootoo shrilly – probably because of his neutering, everything he utters comes out falsetto!! “Bring it on!” screamed their Chief Whip Amna Ally, with a bit more elaboration: “Our 33-seat majority is firm as the rock of Roraima!!” Well, she should know even Roraima was formed by slow erosion from the elements over the millennia.…

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…desuetude Your Eyewitness was intrigued by the tail end of yesterday’s editorial in this newspaper, which dealt with the Government’s claim that Charandass Persaud’s no-confidence vote was invalid because of his dual citizenship with Canada, as per Art 155 (1). “…under the doctrine of “desuetude”, which deals with laws that have not been enforced for long periods, the Court should not compel enforcement of Art 155 (1) in this case.” Desuetude? How the heck do you even pronounce the word? (“Des-wi-tude” said the dictionary!). But the esoteric word brought home…

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…Jordan rushes in Your Eyewitness wouldn’t be so het up if Finance Minister Winston Jordan wanted to play Russian Roulette…Hey! Maybe he gets off with the adrenaline rush and all that! But he does have a big problem when Jordan decided to play Russian Roulette with our upcoming Oil Revenues that’re supposed to be intermediated by a “Natural Resource Fund” (NRF). After sitting on the draft that had been passed on to him by Trotman for two years, Jordan rushed through the Bill when the Speaker had been asked to…

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…by PNC Your Eyewitness is still mulling over what’s behind the PNC ripping off the mask it had so painstakingly created and donned to convince Guyanese – and more importantly, the diplomatic community – it had changed violent stripes. He understood the need for the makeover. The world had moved on from the Cold War days when the West routinely overlooked the excesses of tin-pot dictators. Theodore Roosevelt’s retort when a Latin American ally was criticised: “he’s a son of a bitch; but he’s our son of a bitch”, is…

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Guyanese know that the most powerful neighbour in the North is the United States. It is the country to which most Guyanese would like to go to live. Some may prefer Canada. In the pre-independence and post-independence Guyana, it is understandable that Guyanese would have opted for Britain. But the US is still by far the target country for most Guyanese who travel beyond the Caribbean and South American region. Globalisation, the Internet and rapid commute make it possible for people to travel to big cities around the world very…

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…at GuySuCo The tables have been turned at GuySuCo and, (to mix a metaphor) how low have the mighty fallen!! You could’ve knocked your Eyewitness over with a feather when he read the headline: “GuySuCo managers protest”!! Talk about “man bites dog” news!! Managers in the sugar industry PROTESTING? What next? The Queen of England scrounging with a begging bowl?? For the uninitiated, when Eric Williams declared “Massa day done!” after independence, he didn’t know what the heck he was talking about! “Massa” wasn’t just the British Governor and his…

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