The death of Dr. Roger Luncheon is being used by Bharrat Jagdeo to make the case that the murders and extrajudicial killings of hundreds of African men, in the early 2000s, was hatched and executed by non-other than Luncheon, another African man.
Roger was head of the presidential secretariat, cabinet secretary, and an Executive Member of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP). He was one of the PPP regime’s main spokespersons for the 23 consecutive years they were in government. Now after his death, Jagdeo, with all his venom, has taken the opportunity at a Reflection event, held by the PPP, which was supposed to have honoured Luncheon to dishonour him.
As PPP General Secretary and vice president in the Ali regime, Jagdeo has used his positions to criminalise Luncheon in the hope of convincing society and the world, Luncheon was responsible for the criminal spree that occurred on his watch as President.
This country is aware that Luncheon was the first person who told the nation- after dead bodies were found around the place- a “phantom squad” existed. It was after that pronouncement, dubious characters appeared at various points, identifying themselves as ‘members of the phantom squad,’ flashing their identification cards.
It was during the period when President Jagdeo was questioned about extrajudicial killings and murders, linking his regime to same, he continuously deflected responsibility by asking persons to provide evidence of the state’s involvement, and on each occasion his regime dubbed those who were murdered, “criminals.”
This evil man used the Reflection event to accuse the military officers of failing in their duties and as such an alternative had to be found to deal with crime, is clear acceptance, he and others were aware of the murders and extrajudicial killings. They were not only aware but were involved somehow or the other.
Seeking to now criminalise Luncheon, after his death, when he, Jagdeo, was president and sworn to uphold the Constitution and Laws of Guyana yet felt comfortable participating in activities that broke the law, he must now be held accountable as Head of State and Head of Government. He must be brought before a court of justice to declare what he knows.
We must not be fooled by the kangaroo commission of inquiry, he set up, into the killings that failed to get to the root of the crime and unearth even one person culpable. They also failed to activate the Coroner’s Act to hold inquest into the deaths of those persons.
Luncheon died with the PPP’s secrets and probably unaware that even before his remains were interred the blame would be laid at his feet; that shame and disgrace would be brought on him, his children, siblings, family and loved ones for these killings. These were the most heinous crimes committed in society, post slavery, where the state played an illegal role in the demise of persons.
And it is not accident on Jagdeo’s part to criminalise Luncheon in death; it is a manifestation of how he sees the African man, woman, and child in society, who he constantly scapegoats, and deems worthy of denigration, marginalisation and criminalisation. Notably, even as he demonises Luncheon he sought to exonerate Ronald Gajraj, who was Home Affairs Minister and on whose watch the crime sprees occurred. The late George Bacchus fingered Gajraj as presiding over the phantom squad and many remember only too well Gajraj saying, after the COI was concluded, that he had no regrets.
The criminalising of an African party comrade in death is however a new low, abominable. It is also not of our general culture to speak ill of the dead, but moreso when the veracity of the statement cannot be confirmed. The man has crossed the line and may have done so to save himself from the scrutiny that he is allegedly undergoing from the Western powers.
What he said publicly about Luncheon in death, he never said when the man was alive. His accusations and Roger’s death do not absolve him and others from any guilt, for many of them, at ministerial level, were involved. Society remembers well the role of Leslie Ramsammy in acquiring the triangulating equipment.
Lots of those deaths were justified in the court of public opinion by the PPP, where those who were killed were labelled as criminals and all wanted people. The PPP’s tactic is to label you, demonise you, and then destroy you. They do it to the living, now they are doing it to their own dead loyal, bosom friend and comrade.
Jagdeo’s aim is to damage Luncheon’s reputation so the PPP can go scotch free. He will not succeed in criminalising him without valid and credible evidence presented in a credible court of law and adjudicated on.
We must not let Jagdeo and successive PPP regimes escape responsibility for all the crimes they have committed in Guyana, the extra judicial killings, nacro-trafficking and militarisation, human rights violations and corruption. The people of Guyana must see through the PPP/Jagdeo playbook.
