By Roysdale Forde S.C, M.P- I rather love the quote “Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practise to deceive!” by Sir Walter Scott. This quote speaks volumes in the arena of politics, where deception often begins as a tactical move but quickly entangles its crafters, no matter how skillful they are. In political life, even a small lie can spiral into a network of falsehoods, damaging credibility, undermining public trust, and eroding democratic institutions.
The history of our country, certainly under this dictatorial political administration, is replete with examples that demonstrate that once deception enters the political arena—whether through misinformation, cover-ups, or hidden agendas—it rarely stays contained, often leading to scandal, polarisation, and systemic dysfunction. This quote certainly rings true in the shambolic move, by the PPP/C authoritarian regime, to present to Guyanese, political campaigns disguised as clean-up campaigns, misusing the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), and attempting to embarrass the Georgetown municipality, in the process.
In this stunningly cynical move by the PPP/C has decided that the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) should trade rifles for rakes and boots for brooms. While Venezuelan President, Nicolás Maduro openly threatens to annex our Essequibo—while our borders remain dangerously porous and vulnerable—our soldiers are being deployed not to defend our sovereignty, but to clean up garbage in Georgetown. I
n the meantime, the local government body has been pushed to the side. The government is deliberately starving the municipal authority of much needed resources to get its work done in the nation’s capital. Then appear like the knight in shining armour to rescue the citizens from a decaying city. A remarkable political act that no one is enjoying.
Imagine, at a time when every military resource should be effectively directed toward readiness and deterrence, the government is shamelessly turning our armed forces into a public relations tool by putting members of our army to clean garbage in local communities. Whilst those men and women, in uniform are happy to do it that activity takes away from their constitutional duties.
By any measure, the involvement of our soldiers in clean- up campaigns, particularly in this time of aggression and tension is not a demonstration of civic responsibility; it is a scandalous dereliction of duty. It is clear, that the clean-up activities, organised under the guise of national beautification, are in fact thinly veiled attempts to score cheap political points in the lead-up to the General and Regional Elections fixed for this September. And the PPP/C doesn’t even pretend otherwise.
This is not about pride. This is not about cleanliness. This is about optics—about attempting to embarrass the Georgetown municipality and propping up a failing narrative of “government efficiency” while the real work of national defense goes neglected.
Perhaps, this is the reason why we are yet to hear about the findings from the black box of the crashed Bell Helicopter. Guyanese will recall that on December 6, 2023, a Guyana Defence Force Bell 412EP helicopter tragically crashed in the dense jungle between Arau and Ekereku, near the Venezuelan border. The incident claimed the lives of five senior officers, including Brigadier (ret’d) Gary Beaton, Colonel Michael Shahoud, Lieutenant Colonels Michael Charles and Sean Welcome, and Staff Sergeant Jason Khan. The aftermath of this disaster has been marred by a worrying lack of transparency.
Despite the appointment of an investigator and the retrieval of the helicopter’s black box, which was sent to the USA for analysis, Guyanese have been left in the dark about the findings. Today, as I penned this column the final report o that incident has not been released. Still, the PPP/C government continue to misuse its authority not only to deny Guyanese the right to important information but also to use the members of our GDF to do work that does not fit neatly within their portfolio.
The constitutional role of the GDF is crystal clear: to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Guyana. We know that Venezuela’s aggression is not theoretical—it is active and ongoing. The Maduro regime has escalated rhetoric and military posturing against our western borders, while simultaneously actively engaging in backdoor diplomacy to try and lay illegal claim to our resources. Over the last few weeks, that president claimed to have held sham elections to select a governor for Essequibo. Prior to that there were other incidents of breaches of our borders by that very country. This is not the time for misdirection. But instead of fortifying the frontier and preparing our troops for potential conflict, the government is treating them like a clean-up crew—photo-ops and press releases included. If this doesn’t constitute a betrayal of national interest, what does?
More, the link between the unsustainable clean- up campaigns and the absence of a final report or any official report, for that matter, on the black box of the Guyana Defence Force Bell 412EP helicopter, is the lack of transparency on the part of the government; the opaque governance approach of the incumbent regime. For example, the public is not being told how many millions have been expended by the PPP/C in these so- called clean- up activities.
Also, instead of honouring the separation of powers as detailed by the constitution of this country, respecting the rights and responsibilities of local authorities, and utilising the institutional knowledge, skills and other resources of the municipal bodies, the government is busy spending taxpayers’ dollars to showcase itself, to gain a political advantage in the up- coming general and regional elections. Yet, in many sections, the nation’s capital remains untidy and vulnerable to health and environmental negatives.
When the history of this moment is written, it must reflect that while our soldiers were sweeping the streets, the winds of war were blowing in the west. And the PPP/C was too busy staging photo-ops and positioning themselves for cameras, to hear them.
