Fellow Guyanese: For 12 years, I have had the honour to serve as your president, and I wanted to take the opportunity today to thank you for that honour.
President Bharrat Jagdeo
It has been the greatest privilege of my life to serve the people of this country, and to bear witness to the hard work and dedication of Guyanese from all walks of life, as you continue to create an ever better Guyana.
There have been many difficult days with in the past 12 years, and there have been many moments when there were tough decisions to take. Those moments can be lonely ones. But at all times, when facing such decisions, I have drawn strength from the people of this country – from their basic sense of decency, their compassion and desire to look out for those less fortunate than themselves, and their willingness to advance our democracy so that the future can be better than the past. It is these timeless values that are the hallmark of our society. And it is these values which sustain my unbowed optimism in the future of this country.
At times, too much is made of that which divides us as Guyanese, or has divided us in the past. But if we look around us, we can see that the people of this country have rejected these attempts to create barriers between people.
We should take real pride from the fact that we live in one of the most diverse countries in the world. Few nations anywhere have created such a successful multi-cultural society – and this is lived out every day in sport, culture, commerce and throughout our national life. There are streets in our towns and cities where mosques, temples and churches sit side by side – and around this time of year, we see Guyanese from all faiths and all walks of life coming together for Diwali, for Eid, and then for Christmas. Our children play cricket and football together, they take part in drama and debates, they meet in coffee shops and they chat online. It is in these settings that the true Guyana is visible for all to see, and it is here that our unity is given voice.
This unity provides us with the foundation for an even better future. And building on this foundation the hard work of people across our country will continue to advance our progress towards the Guyana we all want to see.
Of course, as president I am proud of all that the government has achieved in the last 12 years. We are no longer subject to external influence over our economy by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), but instead, we have been one of the fastest growing economies in Caricom and South America in recent years – despite turmoil in the global economy. Our sustained investment in education and health over the years is improving the quality of our people’s lives – and our support for the vulnerable is proving that there is no incompatibility between economic prosperity and compassion for those who need help.
More people own their own homes than ever before, members of our Diaspora are returning home, our private sector is expanding like never before, and the physical infrastructure of the country has been transformed.
I am also proud of all the work that can come to fruition in the years ahead: massive new opportunities for gold, bauxite and manganese mining which could more than double our Gross Domestic Product (GDP). A sugar industry that is viable once more – unlike other countries, Guyana’s industry has survived the massive economic shock presented by changes in European pricing systems. New opportunities for oil export, for business outsourcing, for health services, and a new airport, new hotels, new entertainment facilities.
But I am particularly proud of the fact that these are not isolated achievements to be looked at on their own- instead, they are the practical manifestation of an ever more united Guyana, delivered by hard-working people who love their country.
For progress is a compact between government and the people. And it is people who day in, day out, forge the national character of our country. It is the teachers who nurture our next generation; it is the nurses and medical staff who care for the sick; it is the police and army officers who work to keep our country secure; it is the civil society activists who seek to help those who are in need and are vulnerable; it is the business people who innovate, create jobs and generate wealth; it is the farmers and fishermen who feed our people; it is the compassionate citizens who look out for their neighbours; it is the countless acts of the people of this country that create our future.
Thanks to these people, we have come a long way – but there is much still to do. As citizens, every one of us needs to keep working to reject prejudice and division, we need to continue to expose and then root out corruption from every where it is to be found, we cannot stop working until we deal with poverty and exclusion. Too many of our people are victims of domestic and sexual violence – this is a stain on our national consciousness and everyone in this country has a duty to expose the perpetrators of these acts so that they can be brought to justice. And above all, we must never again return to the days where violence and criminality threatened the institutions of the state and took a heavy toll on decent people’s lives and sense of security. These are all violations of the values we hold dear – and as citizens, we must make it clear that such acts have no place in our land.
Our country is still a work in progress-but progress is not pre-determined. Instead, it will be as a consequence of democratic choices made by our people.
Part of that is choosing our new president and government. But citizens also have a duty to participate in our broader democracy to give it life. I hope that in the years ahead we will see an expanded civic consciousness that is informed about our democratic institutions – and about how they can be used to advance our national development. I hope that we will see a media that fulfils its role by informing debate and holding political leaders and others to account – based on analysis, not untruths and sensationalism. I hope that we will see a blossoming of non- governmental organisations who work to enrich our civic discourse.
With this expanded civic consciousness, we can continue to aim high in the world. Our standing internationally is greater than it has ever been. In the past, we were grateful for the overseas development assistance we received from our friends as we sought to repair our damaged economy – but we are now progressively losing the dependence we had on this financing, and standing on our own two feet as we create a new Guyana. Our international relations are increasingly about trade and investment opportunities, about providing leadership on global matters like climate change or the reform of international institutions, and about embracing the challenges and opportunities in today’s inter- connected world.
Those challenges and opportunities are vastly different to what they were when I first took office. Twelve years ago, many saw our opportunities as limited because they saw us merely as a small Caribbean nation. Today, we seek to participate on a global stage. Not because we are seeking recognition for the sake of recognition – but because in the modern world, countries which turn in on themselves will not succeed. We are now very much part of a thriving South American continent with a landscape of opportunity that is transformed.
The digital revolution; the low carbon industrial revolution; the fast pace of technological advance; the rise of China, India, Brazil and others; a world population of seven billion people seeking food, energy, minerals and metals. These are all transforming how the world will operate for decades to come.
We could be frightened by the complexity of this landscape, or we can continue to have the courage to embrace it.
If we have the conviction and ambition to do this, Guyana has the potential to be one of the world’s most progressive and dynamic places – with an information technology- savvy population that is connected to the outside world; with one of the world’s outstanding examples of low carbon development and the world’s second largest forest climate services arrangement; with social services that protect the vulnerable, keep our population healthy and ensure that the next generation of Guyanese will be as well-educated as people anywhere in the world; with world-class protected areas at Kaieteur Falls, Iwokrama, Shell Beach and the Kanuku Mountains. And above all, a Guyana that reflects the values of its people, that is prosperous, socially just and internationally responsible.
In the coming days, we will go to the polls to choose our next president. We will also select individuals to act as our regional and national representatives for the next five years.
I hope and expect that the elections and their aftermath will pass off peacefully. This will be a profound statement about the strength and maturity of our Guyanese democracy.
We must remain ever vigilant to ensure that the calmness of the process, or the sometimes harsh words of competitive politics, do not hide the significance of what will happen on Monday (November 28). Millions of people across the world are denied the opportunity to take part in free and fair elections – it is just two decades since this right was denied in Guyana. We should never forget that this right is the most sacred foundation of our democracy, and it must be defended and protected on behalf of today’s Guyanese and generations to come.
So fellow Guyanese: I bid you farewell as your president. I thank you for the trust you gave me and for the opportunity to serve you.
I leave with a sense of hope for the future of Guyana that makes me believe that our best days have still to come, and with a sense of confidence that the people of this country have what it takes to give full life to the vision of a free, secure, socially just and prosperous Guyana.
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