Dear Editor,
In my capacity as President of the Guyanese American Chamber of Commerce (GACC) and Chair of the Private Sector Council of the Institute of Caribbean Studies (ICS), I wrapped up on Friday a series of engagements in Washington, DC with officials at the US Department of State; some key lawmakers and their staffs on Capitol Hill; and representatives of a number of non-Government and political organisations. These engagements had to do primarily with efforts to ensure the renewal of the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (old CBI), funding for components of the US/Caribbean Strategic Engagement Act and activities surrounding the State Department’s designation of 2020 as the Year of the Caribbean. I also participated in two sessions of the Latin America and Caribbean Forecast Forum at the American Association of Chambers of Commerce of Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the Making African Trade Easy (MATE), a two-day conference and expo held at the Ronald Reagan International Trade Center.
However, inevitably the current situation in Guyana formed part of the discussions. I will not get into details about my exchanges on this issue other than to say that I totally support the statements issued by the AB and EU countries as well as the Commonwealth and the OAS. I would have preferred an election this year but that is now behind us. My concern now is for a peaceful and stable environment in which free, fair, transparent and verifiable elections can be held which would provide for all the contesting parties to accept the results of the elections and to work together for the future progress and prosperity of Guyana for the benefit of all Guyanese.
During my stay in Washington, I saw media reports of a tweet from Senator Marco Rubio which made reference to a new Government. In diplomacy and some national Constitutions and even perhaps political jargon, when reference is made to a new Government following an election, it means whichever party forms the Government including the incumbent. Unfortunately, certain sections of society were “spinning” the tweet to suggest that Senator Rubio was recommending that the electorate reject the incumbent at the next election and elect a new Government.
I am non-partisan in terms of Guyana’s politics and feel strongly that only in rare cases should foreign elected officials advise on the rejection of any political party contesting an election. So, I decided that I should seek an audience with the Senator’s office to verify the authenticity and the meaning of the content of the tweet. His office afforded me an audience at short notice and was able to discuss the tweet, the current situation in Guyana, Venezuela’s ongoing claim to Guyana’s territory and maritime space and US/Caricom relations.
On the issue of the tweet, the Senator’s office had the previous afternoon via telephone indicated that the tweet was authentic and that, as it had said earlier that day to some Guyanese journalists including Mark Benschop via telephone, the tweet was not meant to suggest an endorsement or rejection of any political party contesting the Guyana elections. A spokesperson for the Senator’s office later sent me the following statement indicating that I was free to circulate it: “The Senator’s tweet was not an endorsement to any political party in a sovereign nation. The future of Guyana is up to the Guyanese people.”
I posted this statement to social media and received significant criticism, some even suggesting it is fake while others questioned whether I was a lobbyist for APNU or the PPP/C. I am not a lobbyist for anyone. In order to be a lobbyist in the US, one has to so register and there are certain conditions under which elected officials must interact with lobbyists. In the case of Senator Rubio, is represents Florida, where I live, and as any good politician would do, he and his staff react to issues and concerns raised by his constituents. I consider the “spin” put on the tweet by certain sections of the media to be unethical, unprofessional and even mischievous.
As indicated earlier, my commitment at this time is to help to ensure a peaceful, stable, and prosperous future for Guyana and all Guyanese and I will be doing whatever I can to contribute to this objective.
Regards,
Wesley Kirton