Ancestors Rejected Fort Island Flag Raising, Says Hamilton Green

Dear Editor,

From all reports received the arrangements at Fort Island for our Diamond Jubilee Independence were credible, except for one never before event where for the first time in my memory the Golden Arrowhead refused, and I refer to use of the word “refuse” later, to be hoisted at midnight as expected. The Independence events at Providence and at Albion, I’m told were magnificent. At both events the unique employment of drones, and other glitter were effectively utilised in the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, similar to shows put on by Hollywood and other first world countries.

The President and those responsible for putting on these magnificent performances deserve our highest commendation and congratulations, which I offer on behalf of those who spoke with me and were on official duty.
President Ali’s Independence address at Fort Island was well put together and the theme of unity is one of necessity and urgency. I must assume that as an individual the President means well and may even believe in the words that flowed forth at Fort Island, however, the old folks say, “wha mouth nah load” which means; is not what you say, but what is done.

If there is the slightest possibility that President Ali understands and means what he said, he has to first surround himself with persons of professional competence, who are true patriots, as distinct from hustlers and those interested in the accumulation of massive wealth by improper means. But, back to Fort Island, Fort Island was where the Dutch once established Fort Zeelandia the capital of Essequibo, with labour and torture of slaves.

The graves which were indiscriminately bulldozed and other area levelled, obviously disturbed the ancestors. And those of us who fast occasionally, and appreciate the significance of the desecration of scared grounds, realised that the ancestors expressed their anger by refusing to allow the flag to be hoisted at the man-appointed time. This is not a matter to reprimand or punish any personnel, this is clearly a deep spiritual matter.

We must never ignore the existence of a soul, a partnership with the ancestors. I recall when the Georgetown to Berbice road was being reconstructed, there was a large silk-cotton tree in the middle of the road, opposite to where the Robinsons and Grahams lived, they and others advised against removing that tree to straighten the road, the young superintendents and engineers ignored this, and attempted to bulldoze the tree, two things happened which are documented in the records of the Ministry of Works; one: the bulldozer operator fell ill and died within a few days and the bulldozer malfunctioned.

This tree, represented the halfway mark between Georgetown and Rosignol and some time in the early eighties, this tree fell on its own accord and residents with the appropriate prayers and libations replanted a silk cotton tree. I am confident that the Head of State and his top advisors may scoff at the contents of this letter, but they bulldozed and disturbed the resting place of the ancestors, but they can never silence them, unless the appropriate persons and methods are used to appease the wrath of our noble ancestors.

The second concern I have, unless things have changed, how can you bundle your Cabinet member, members of the diplomatic corps with no escort vessels and provision for emergency dis-embarkment, a breach of basic security. No further comment is required.

Third; reliable sources determined that at the three events, Fort Island, Providence Stadium and Albion the gatherings did not represent the composition of Guyana, and this boast of being a land of six people suggests that many felt sidelined and unmoved to attend. This is not a matter to be trivialised. I have elsewhere called attention that persons intimately involved in the critical stages of our march to Independence who are still alive were ignored, a sad and sorry situation.

I am sending separate copies to three of the closest advisors to the President, whose fore-parents came here on the Louisa Baillie.

Yours truly,
Elder Hamilton Green