Indo-Guyanese fearful of discrimination

– in wake of Govt’s dismissal of former GPL CEO Bharat Dindyal

By Kristen Macklingam

In light of the A Partnership For National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government’s decision in relieving Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL), Bharat Dindyal, of his duties without proper notice or dialogue, concerns continue to grow as to whether this was truly a political move or an act of ‘ethnic cleansing’.

Former Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran, in his blog, “The Conversation Tree” on Saturday, stated that the manner of the dismissal of Dindyal, who is one of the best and most dedicated managers in the State system, will send “shivers down the spines” of the ethnically sensitive.

“In justifying his (Dindyal’s) dismissal, a not-too-subtle attempt was made to portray his continued employment without a written contract, even though he was continuing on the job only until a replacement could be found, as some sort of sinister plot. The incidents that led to the dismissal were reported … [another section of the media] (Friday). If the report is true, then Dindyal resisted gross and continued insubordination from his Deputy, which was supported by the Minister,” said Ramkarran.

He went on to say that the display of rage by Dindyal was not “what did him in”. “His dismissal was prompted by his resistance to the insubordination and the exposure of the political involvement. He has stood up and resisted in times past in different circumstances. This political culture in much of the Third World that infects our political system as well, embraces the type of gross political interference and insubordination which Dindyal perceived and which he protested,” the former Speaker of the House explained.

He emphasised that political interference crushed all those in its path who attempted to resist. Dindyal was notified on Friday that his engagement with GPL was concluded with effect on the said day at 16:00h.

“Dindyal is the first known victim since the elections and will not be the last unless the Government breaks with this culture. The Government should have no doubt in its mind that these acts will all add up to the growing perception by the Indian Guyanese community that discrimination against them will become a part of their lot under the APNU+AFC coalition. The Government must understand that the rise of such sentiments is not determined by constructive examination of facts and rational conclusions arising there from,” Ramkarran posited.

He added that the rise of these sentiments emerged from perceptions rooted in historical circumstances that were given expression by Guyana’s two-party system which drove and sustained the perceptions.

Growing perception

“I do not accept that there is such discrimination, but the growing perception is a negative phenomenon so early in the life of Government. It should not be dismissed, because once such perception takes hold, they are very difficult to overcome. Guyana’s politics are organised for the expression of ethnic sentiments and are driven by ethnic considerations,” Ramkarran noted.

He made reference to the period 1957-1964 when the PPP Government(s) were accused of racism, being a ‘rice’ government and the PNCR era of the 1970s and 1980s when the PNCR Governments were accused of “racial and political discrimination”.

According to Ramkarran’s blog, with the advent of the APNU/AFC Government, many Indian Guyanese have become fearful of discrimination and, in particular, fearful of the loss of promotions or job opportunities, loss of access which is vital for overcoming bureaucratic inertia or manoeuvring around ‘bottlenecks’ in the conduct of business.

“The fear is being generated by the reality of Indians losing their jobs, notwithstanding that most of those are political appointments and are expected to resign upon a change of government or are public servants who have elected to climb a political platform. While on the ground there is little substance to any charge of discrimination, there have been worrying developments. The negative phenomenon was given impetus when Clairmont Lye and Andaiye, two of the most powerful and respected voices in civil society, who do not go to press lightly, raised the issue by protesting in letters to … [another section of the media] the ethnically unbalanced and the gender deficient state boards which had been announced,” he further stated.

However, to Government’s credit, it swiftly recognised the complaint and undertook to review the appointments.