SN’s article captioned “Gov’t does not intervene in work of Commissioner of Information -President…” (SN, April 13, 2025). Whenever I think that this country has run out of surprises, a new one arrives. I like the word “intervene”. Though no one is talking about micromanaging here. But who does he report to, who has some responsibility for both the commissioner and his output, or lack of it; his responsiveness or absence of such? The Office of Commissioner of Information may be an island, or a bastion of secrecy, or a protective fortress with the drawbridge elevated to ward off intruders. But surely, both the office and the commissioner are not inoculated against legitimate inquiry, with all procedures followed. Just as surely, I am unable to think of how the Office of the Commissioner of Information is bigger than the Office of the President. The holder of that lofty office is not bigger than the laws of this country, is he? He cannot be existing in isolation, a refugee fleeing from the press of the curious and the questioning.
If he were so inclined, the president could call Vice President number one, Prime Minister Mark Phillips to give an accounting of the activities that all under his portfolio. On a sloppy day, I should think that Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo also presents some level of detail about happenings in his countless areas of responsibility. The eagle-eyed would note that I removed a number from Vice President Jagdeo’s title. I resisted taking away the vice section. Even Dr. Jagdeo must at some time show what he is working on, where matters are. Status updates, progress reports, or just plain statistics, on which the Ali government has written its own book. I point out that that “intervene” does not apply, and that it is simply an aspect of business. So, if PM Phillips and VP Jagdeo have some obligation to report, or answer colleagues or, at least, give some idea of what they are doing, then the Commissioner of Information must be held to the same standard. Look at it this way: one was in charge of the nation’s army, and the other in charge of the whole country. It seems to me that an officer whose duties involve pushing paper, as received from many official sources, from Point A to Point B, also falls into a category below what houses Drs. Phillips and Jagdeo. They share, so must he. Remember what says so.
I take another tack. Even if per Excellency Ali “we don’t intervene”, he has a duty to know. He must, given the serial concerns raised about that office and the responsiveness of its chief officer, whose haughty dismissals upturn what the law requires. Since President Ali insists that he is all about transparency, and the record of the Office of the Commissioner of Information is of secrecy, it is high time that Guyana’s chief executive intervenes. That is, unless the office that the Commissioner of Information holds makes him primus inter pares. Bharrat Jagdeo may object; but the president has made his position clear: “we don’t intervene.” Whether the president cares or not, he risks looking and sounding frivolous. As a Holy Week gift, looking frivolous is not something that President Ali should be proud of; not with longstanding sentiments and conclusions about his leadership. Why toy with fire, keep skipping down the ladder of self-respect? Incidentally, and respectfully, Mr. President, “politically motivated” is the first refuge of political losers. I think that “politically motivated” is a two-word code for cranks, crackpots, and critics, which has now fallen out of favor. Election year has its pluses: everyone behave themselves.
Something is wrong with all this, not jelling. The Commissioner of Information, even on his better days, is blanker than a roll of toilet tissue. President Ali didn’t help. He hang-glided to the scene and took blankness to another level. I am perplexed at the contortions (don’t intervene) operating on top of what could be a medical condition (don’t respond). I am astonished that seeking a few pieces of paper could cause so much constipation in this country. Institutional constipation. Leadership constipation. Mental constipation. To stretch the issue a tad, there is this conniption fit. Some serious documents with serious deficits just have to be concealed, so there is this sales production about “we don’t intervene” from the president, in the midst of nonproduction from the erudite and once nimble Commissioner.
When I tell people that Guyana is in the worst shape of its existence, some shrug resignedly; others smirk contentedly. At one time, the Catholic Church was a leader in the banning of books. It seems that President Ali has joined that medieval clique: he is a leader in nonintervention, as if condoning the unofficial banning of paper leaving the Commissioner of Information’s untouchable office. Guyanese who still read should be grateful that only a few sheets of paper are causing the hullabaloos, and not books.
Last, I have my newest humble recommendation for Excellency Ali. Seeing that the Commissioner of Information and his office are held so highly, it would be fitting to go to the expense of outfitting him with a toga. By that kind consideration, he would be more resplendently attired to perform in his self-appointed role as a Roman Emperor.
