Dear Editor,
President Irfaan Ali’s latest statements suggesting that sweeping changes will occur at GUYSUCO in 2026 if production targets are not met amount to nothing more than political bluff and recycled rhetoric that Guyanese have heard before—without consequence, without accountability, and without results.
This is not the first time the President has made such threats. In 2024 and again in 2025, President Ali publicly declared that “heads would roll” at GUYSUCO if performance did not improve. Sugar production targets were missed, estates remained inefficient, billions of dollars in taxpayers’ funds were poured into the industry, yet no meaningful leadership accountability followed. The same executives remained, the same mismanagement persisted, and workers and taxpayers paid the price.
The pattern did not stop at GUYSUCO. The President also warned that senior officials at the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) would face consequences for chronic blackouts, mismanagement, and poor service delivery. Despite repeated failures, escalating costs, and ongoing hardship for businesses and households, no decisive action was taken. Once again, the President’s words proved louder than his actions.
Equally troubling is the President’s handling of the driver’s licence fraud scandal involving police ranks. Guyanese were assured that officers involved would be swiftly dismissed and held accountable. To date, the public has seen no comprehensive list of dismissals, no transparent outcomes, and no reassurance that the system has been cleaned up. This silence reinforces the perception that the President’s tough talk was merely performative.
Perhaps the most glaring example of overpromise and under-delivery is the long-touted hydropower project. Guyanese were repeatedly promised that hydropower would be completed and would slash electricity costs by as much as 50 percent. Years later, the project remains unaccomplished, electricity costs remain high, and citizens are left wondering whether this, too, was just another headline promise with no delivery plan.
Leadership is not measured by press statement and threats; it is measured by outcomes. When deadlines pass, targets are missed, and no one is held accountable, credibility is lost. Guyanese are no longer interested in warnings about what might happen in 2026. They are demanding answers about why nothing happened in 2024 and 2025 when the President made the very same promises.
The people of Guyana deserve honesty, transparency, and decisive leadership—not repeated bluffs designed to buy time and deflect responsibility.
Perhaps the President needs to read the riot act to his absent Minister of Agriculture, who is more focused on wealth accumulation than service to the people of Guyana. That might be a good place to set the example of changes in 2026.
Sincerely,
Vinceroy Jordan
Member of Parliament
