…for survival
Some were surprised at the sneaky announcement by the APNU and AFC of their new “revised” Cummingsburg Accord last weekend: no media invited. Now, since we all know publicity’s the lifeblood of any political campaign –millions are spent to get just a mention in the press –exactly what was going on when only an edited recording of the event is made available? The PNC’s trying to control the narrative of their coalition that is not a coalition, that’s what! And having pesky reporters ask inconvenient questions just wouldn’t do!!
So, what can we gather from the tea leaves in the carefully-released snippets? Firstly, there’s the colour of the cover of the Accord – green like Granger’s shirt – held by a smirking Granger and a grateful Ramjattan, with his yellow shirt discreetly hidden by his jacket. This said it all – this accord was a PNC production that insisted not even a sliver of yellow be in sight!! We can judge THIS book by its cover!!
From their first go-around, we always knew this “coalition of convenience” was going to be totally about divvying up spoils! No argument about macro-economic policy or such minor things like what to do with coming oil revenues and such like! It was all about who in the PNC and AFC would be getting what, when and how!! But the PNC had already announced that the AFC’s number of MP’s and Ministries were slashed so the only question left hanging was who’d be the PM bride to this union. Nagamootoo or Ramjattan??
Well, we’re nowhere closer to having that answer. The two media outfits with inside access were non-committal. News Source said Ramjattan was “likely” to be the PM candidate while all the Chronic would reveal was “the PM Candidate would be from the AFC”!! How could he skin his teeth while kept dangling in the wind? Poor Ramjattan: still the rejected runt after so many years and so many slights. Is he so consumed with hatred of Jagdeo that he’d even forego his last chance to get that tax-free PM salary and pension?? But what will be left for him? The AG post that commands the same salary as the PM?
The pretence of the PNC at insisting that APNU was a “coalition” was pathetic! In addition to PNC leader Granger (and the aforementioned Ramjattan, skinning his teeth!), there were individuals who were supposed to represent the other members but in reality, represented their entire membership!! Interestingly, Sharma and his son were there. Was this signalling that JFAP is double the size of the others “one-man” parties??
President Obama famously pointed out, “You can put lipstick on a pig but it still remains a pig!!”
And the AFC ain’t even got on lipstick!!
…on Boxing Day
Your Eyewitness is firmly convinced that the only reason we, in the Republic of Guyana, keep the British holiday of Boxing Day is to give us an extra day to recover from our excesses of Christmas Day!! We know for sure that no Guyanese goes around sharing “boxes” of leftovers to the needy!! While it may have been practised back in old Blighty when the nobility still enjoyed Droit du seigneur (the right to take the virginity of lower-class damsels) – the planters didn’t practise it here! The sharing, NOT the bedding!!
Now, your Eyewitness can understand folks being happy the messiah was born on this day and all. But do they have to express their happiness with such licentiousness and drunkenness? Starting from Christmas Eve, the revelry continued through the night so one woke up to Christmas Day as if it were a “stale booze” J’ouvert morning!
It’s said that some folks attend Church on Christmas Day…but they have to be an ever-diminishing minority in Guyana!
…multi-religiously?
After a tele-pastor insulted another religion by insisting that their practices caused a deadly vehicular accident at Mahaicony, the ERC had him issue an apology.
Now that he’s recanted the apology, what’s the ERC’s gonna do with this recalcitrant priest??