2007??? Already???

Where will Guyana be at the end of 2007? That is the question of the day...mail your thoughts to: guyana360@gmail.com

Tonight we home sipping on Grey Goose and vodka and just happen to be flipping though television stations only to find President Bharrat Jagdeo and Robert Corbin, Opposition Leader, jostling for our attention.

Who you think grabbed our attention?

Corbin of course.

There was no need to listen to the President’s New Year’s address for the obvious reason…For a President he has a bunch of lazy speech writers who simply tap into his inauguration speech and extract some high points and then butter it up nicely.
Don’t just take our word for it, listen to the speech that was presented to the Parliament.

Corbin on the other hand was worth the pound of salt, for two main reasons; An Opposition Leader is expected to flip the shiny side of the rock to reveal the damp, dark truth about the entire unit. The second reason stemmed from the obvious fact that the PNCR-1G (1 more Greedy man in Parliament) lost ground at the 2006 elections and it would have been interesting to hear about the party’s future.

Corbin…

“Beneath the thin layer of window dressing that passes for normalcy lie tensions, uncertainties and a sense of anxiety as to where the winds of fortune will take us next.
Our people have long ceased to be distracted by frequent pronouncements about progress and development. Quite simply, they are far too preoccupied with the reality of their own difficult circumstances. Those circumstances make a mockery of the ceaseless declarations that Guyana is “going places’. The crisis that is afflicting our country cannot be wished away by colourful propaganda and elaborate “spin”. It is real for all to see.
Every Guyanese is aware that poverty and hard times persist, that crime and corruption have become uncontrollable cancers and that, as a people, we are divided. Every Guyanese is aware of the relentless flight of skills from our country and of the sense of frustration among our young people who cannot satisfy their aspirations. Every Guyanese is aware of that sense of apprehension about what lies ahead for our country. These concerns and anxieties cannot be glossed over by hollow-sounding pronouncements about progress. They hang like the proverbial sword of Damocles over our heads. As the late, great musical genius Bob Marley put it - “he, who feels it, knows it”. The façade of progress which the Government is seeking so desperately to sustain continues to be exposed for what it is – a mere chimera.”

On the party…

“I believe that it is fitting at this time that the People’s National Congress Reform provides its members and supporters with renewed expressions of our concern for issues that affect their lives and the lives of all of the people of this country. In the days, weeks and months ahead you will see greater evidence of a vigorous and constructive agenda in our approach to tackling our responsibilities with respect to representation of your issues and concerns.”