Category: Eyewitness

…about NYT report That NYT reporter certainly seems to’ve struck a raw nerve in some folks in Guyana, with his story, “The $20 Billion question for Guyana”. As your Eyewitness commented yesterday, three columnists of the Muckraker got their buktas into such a knot you could just see their eyes bulging!! Today, they were joined by the PRO from the Ministry of Finance, and by a playwright who hadn’t been heard from for years, but suddenly surfaced to argue the Guyana Prize for Literature be kept. This monument to mediocrity…

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…on elections goals? Under fire from the Opposition – both for his appointment and his decision on the Deputy CEO of GECOM – Rtd Justice James Patterson made some conciliatory noises, saying that “elections count for nothing if they aren’t “free and fair””. Was he trying to placate the Opposition as he addressed employees of the elections body who were being trained for the imminent LGE? But in his remarks, notwithstanding the laudatory sentiment, Patterson simply emphasised why he was objectionable to the Opposition in the first place. He noted,…

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…fallen Police The Minister of Public Security, Khemraj Ramjattan, and the Commissioner of Police (ag), David Ramnarine, spoke at the annual ceremony “honouring” Policemen killed in the line of duty since 1913. The number is 63. One suspects that the organisers began their body-count from 1913 because the numbers killed from the GPF’s formation in 1839 to that point could be counted on the fingers of their hands. But what your Eyewitness found surprising was the studied refusal of the two speakers to mention our very recent history, when the…

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…of the Broomes syndrome It’s clear that President Granger – avuncular as he pretends to be – is willing to tolerate the crassest of behaviours from his ministers. But to your Eyewitness, if Guyana can even aspire to the HOPE of a civilised future, there’s got to be a line drawn somewhere in the sand, which Government ministers and officers cannot cross. Especially when the behaviour goes beyond crass. And “I is” Broomes’ vulgar display at the Providence New Thriving crosses whatever “Code of Conduct” Trotman might’ve been talking about…

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…and defending it Appearing before the bi-partisan Parliamentary Sectoral Committee on Natural Resources, an Exxon management team, headed by its country director, became quite offended when asked by one PPP member to comment on perceptions that the oil giant might be financing local politicians. “Hogwash!” he exploded. Now you, dear readers, would know your Eyewitness is a die-hard free enterprise partisan. So he doesn’t have much patience with those who thought the Exxon fella was rude!! Hey…do free enterprise proponents have to take brickbats and even flagellate themselves?? Lobbying politicians…

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…on gas power Now that we in the Caribbean are moving closer to legalising ganja, we’ve got to be on the lookout for some Government flunkies jumping the gun and puffing on spliffs while pontificating!! Case in point is Minister of Public Infrastructure, David Patterson, who keeps making statements that clearly aren’t grounded in reality. Remember him promising the new Demerara Harbour Bridge by 2020?? Everyone had a good snicker at that, since that would’ve given him only 2 years. And unless he was planning on another floating pontoon structure,…

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…and Jordan Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo pointed out that by offering tax amnesties to those folks who haven’t paid their taxes, Finance Minister Winston Jordan was opening up serious “moral hazard” questions. The PPP’s General Secretary also noted this danger was identified by the IMF. Well!! Who told Jagdeo to raise this moral hazard danger!??!! Jordan came out swinging: “I don’t know what’s all this nonsense about moral hazard Jagdeo’s talking about!!” This reaction was so heated and personal your Eyewitness assumed Jordan thought Jagdeo was accusing HIM of some…

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…in the PPP With the (strained) decision of the CCJ – Guyana has to become a full-blown dictatorship for Art 90 to be considered to “affect” the people’s sovereignty in Art 1 &9!! – PPP General Secretary Jagdeo gracefully accepted he cannot become a candidate for the Presidency. Apart from the exultation and joy in the PNC ranks that the PPP wouldn’t be able to field their strongest candidate, it was obvious the party had to select another standard- bearer in 2020. But it was interesting when Jagdeo — as…

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…Nagamootoo “Prime Minister” Nagamootoo has been reduced by President Granger – the leader of the PNC – to writing a column for the Chronicle. Being the passive-aggressive personality he is, however, rather than confronting Granger directly over the latter’s failure to even honour the SPIRIT of the Cummingsburg Accord, much less its LETTER, he’s resorted to displaying his displeasure veiledly in his column. What’s a “Passive-aggressive personality”, you ask, dear reader? Ahhh…it’s the behavioural repertoire of the child who’s smacked down so frequently by his parents – or other authority…

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…for “we own” Half of the PNC supporters live in Georgetown and its environs. And with politics in Guyana dominated by the doling out of patronage, the cash spigot of the City has always been seen as crucial to the party’s fortunes. But the handouts have never been so blatantly disbursed. Take that G$57 million that the PNC-at-the Centre gave to the PNC-at-City Hall to hand out as it pleases to its councillors to fund “projects” in their wards. The PPP’s complained this is nothing more than campaign funding for…

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