𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐲

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The PPP government is abusing financial resources, paying a battery of letter writers to promote it in the newspapers and social media. They pen favourable content to influence public opinion. The usual suspects write under multiple names with generous remuneration for pro-government posts. One of them was a columnist with an independent newspaper, and now, with the state media and co-hosts a weekly video programme; he is handsomely rewarded.

Another one lives in St. Lucia, writing under different names. A junior minister also writes under a fake or pen name, promoting the government and attacking legitimate critics and the opposition. Some who are members of government boards or agencies also write under fake names defending or promoting the government.

The objective of the state funded letter writers is to create a positive image of the government so as to influence the public on its workings. They promote the government’s initiatives, schemes, policies, programs, and achievements. The opposition and even critics have been subjected to abuse, especially in the state media. The opposition, the educated class, and the elite know about the government’s letter campaign. But they are helpless because the PPP government controls the state-owned media from which the opposition and civic society are excluded and the government is flush with funds from oil revenues.

Enormous amounts of money have been coming in that the government is on a spendthrift drive to promote itself for re-election. In so doing, the government is undermining democracy; the PPP government is using state resources to promote itself. Freezing of Guyana’s oil revenues by the USA would end the abuse; the money is wasted, and much of it is grabbed by corrupt politicians who are in cahoots with crooked business persons.

The opposition parties should approach the ABCE countries about the abuse of state media and state revenues from oil. Those who use the media for partisan purposes and those who oversee the biased state media should have their visas revoked. Those who mismanage state revenues in corrupt schemes and money laundering should also have their visas revoked.

Besides state media, the PPP government also utilizes private PR firms to promote its programs and policies. Contracts enrich PPP-linked media or publishing businesses and supporters. Only a handful of private (PR) firms are awarded contracts to produce advertisements and publications for the government. Firms thought to have been affiliated with the opposition have been blanked. Firms have to be loyal to the government and trusted by ranking officials. Tens of billions of dollars in contracts went to these companies over the last four years.

One company received $1.7 billion for the promotion of the Housing Expo at Providence earlier this month. Rumour is the company is co-owned by two government functionaries and a businessman in the private sector. That company received many billions of dollars in contracts since September 2020. That company has had the contract to make and display content about schemes, programs, and achievements of the PPP government. It is in cahoots with corrupt politicians. That company and its owners should be sanctioned by America if the USA has not already done so.

Besides funding pro-government writers and abusing the state media against the opposition, the PPP government also goes after independence voices. The government has pursued a policy of silencing criticism and victimizing critics. Independent voices have been threatened if they do not fall in line behind government’s policy. Those who write positively of the government are praised while those who penned critical posts are maligned. Reporters from independent media houses were often disrespected, reprimanded, or abused when they asked probing questions or query suspected actions of government.

The government has been presenting a favourable environment for itself using government money. Social media has helped civic society and the opposition to present a more objective view of government. Independent digital platforms are saluted for exposing waste and abuse of power by the PPP government over the last four years. They and the two independent newspapers have been doing a great job in seeking to debunk the PPP’s fake narrative.

The PPP government must be reined in over control of the media and paying people to promote it while also attacking critics in private newspapers and on social media. An effective way to rein in the government from abusing resources for media promotion is to cancel visas of relevant officials who are in charge of the state media and those who manage the economy.

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