Dear Editor,
From 2020, we have seen a very different kind of governance in Guyana, certainly, at least in my lifetime. The PPP/C government set out to establish what Paul Raskin et al in the book ‘Great Transition: The Promise and Lure of the Times of the Times Ahead’ called a ‘Fortress World’. One of the scenarios envisioned in the book is ‘Barbarisation’ which focuses on ‘Fortress World’ and ‘Breakdown’. In Guyana, from 2020 to 2025, we have seen the barbarization of the Guyanese society through the PPP/C’s approach to governance as they built what can be considered as a ‘Fortress World’, however, the building of the ‘Fortress World’ also leads to the element of ‘Breakdown’. ‘Fortress World’ in this PPP/C government’s context, is enabled by the crisis of governance and powerful business forces in the Guyanese society. What we are seeing is the emergence of an authoritarian system of apartheid where the elites in Guyana are protected in their enclaves while the majority of Guyanese are on the outside.
A fortress is a fortification; it is a place that is fortified. Fortification in military science is any work erected to strengthen a position against attack. From 2020, we have seen the PPP/C government developing enclaves and massive fortifications and protections around those enclaves. The PPP/C government clearly had a strategy from 2020 which was to develop a ‘Fortress World’or the ‘One Guyana’ and a totally different Guyana on the outside of the fortress. Let’s look at the ‘Fortress World’ Guyana, it has levels. There are those in the fortress like Gerry Gouveia who now has wealth, power and status, so as the National Security Advisor (NSA), he stays in the fortress because he is also a businessman, and while there are so many security challenges in Guyana, the National Security Advisor remains quiet because his business takes precedence over his responsibilities as the NSA. If he dares to do otherwise, he could be thrown out of the fortress and may fear that his businesses could suffer like the rest on the outside.
Another example is Brian Tiwari’s aka BK’s recent announcement that he is back with the PPP/C. In my view, BK made a calculated decision that it is probably better for business to be a part of the PPP/C’s ‘Fortress World’ than to be on the outside. Many in the private sector, law enforcement sector and public sector; including the Speaker of the National Assembly, among others, are all in the fortress. The PPP/C then set out to build protections around their ‘Fortress World’. They fired the professional Police Service Commission members and replaced them with their own choices, the current configuration of the Ethnic Relations Commission, the leadership of the Guyana Police Force, the Director of Public Prosecution, and
many others, are within the fortress, as well as they provide protection for those on the inside. The judiciary, the Guyana Defence Force and sections of the media, including social media are not quite in the ‘Fortress World’, yet.
Dr. Henry Jeffrey in an article in the Village Voice online on May 8, 2025, and titled ‘Unintended Consequences of PPP’s surveillance state’ indicated that “the ruling oligarchy has established ‘political commissars’ in almost every important social institution over which it has control”. The commissars are a part of the ‘Fortress World’ and the protection of that world. As one listens and observes President Ali and Second Vice President Jagdeo, particularly from 2020, they were confident in its fortification. That confidence is beginning to wane as they begin to see their ‘Fortress World’ collapse. Dr. Jeffrey also stated in the article that “‘One Guyana’ is a particular expression of a surveillance state that is specifically directed at the other two substantial ethnic groups: Africans and Amerindians. The general idea is to disadvantage them and subvert their leadership to herd them into the ranks of the PPP’”.
Dr. Jeffrey stated that there are ‘unintended consequences of PPP’s surveillance state’. The ‘One Guyana’ and ‘surveillance state’ are different labels for the PPP’s ‘Fortress World’. I could not help but wonder over the past two weeks if BK made his decision to go into the PPP fortress, a week too soon. What we have seen over the past two weeks in Guyana, was indeed the occasion for a response from those who have been disadvantaged over the past four plus years. Adrianna Younge’ death and the surrounding circumstances served as the trigger for many of those who felt disadvantaged over the past years, to unleash the anger, pain. hurt, dissatisfaction, etc. Many people who were not on the streets were cheering the protesters on.
While the PPP/C had a plan, I do not think that they had figured out the endgame. The plan was to use the oil money to build the ‘Fortress World’ and those who would like to be successful in Guyana have to be in that fortress or remain unseen. Social psychologists have indicated that when an instruction is given, if the instructions are obeyed, then things may work smoothly but what happens if the instructions are not obeyed. The PPP’s plan was to suppress resistance and criminalize and ostracize those who resisted.
The terrorism charges are a perfect example of this. However, the level of immaturity, callousness, negligence and even recklessness from this current PPP/C government is astounding. While I can understand the immaturity from the President, it is the Second Vice President who surprised me. He is more experienced and seemingly more exposed to international norms, values and principles, so one would have thought that as the main strategist for the PPP party and government he would know that in 2020/2025, Guyanese and more specifically, black people, would resist any attempt by the government to oppress them.
Over the past four and a half years, Afro-Guyanese have been scanning the PPP/C government like an X-ray machine scans the body. There is this deep intense ‘CT-like’scanning, even ‘MRI-like’scanning that is going on in the Afro-Guyanese community of the current governance approach and activities of this government. There is anger, hurt, pain, confusion, helplessness but incredible strength and an understanding that something has to be done to change the current form of governance, even though they do not quite know what that something is.
One of the consequences of the ‘Fortress World’ is ‘Breakdown’. In his book, Paul Raskin referred to ‘Breakdown’ as the authoritarian forces of Fortress World being unable to counter spreading chaos as environmental and social crises spiral out of control, conflict spreads, and institutions disintegrate. The collapse of the PPP/C ‘Fortress World’ has begun, and it has turned out to be a waste of international goodwill, political capital, state and other resources, for PPP/C to have spent five precious years to build a ‘Fortress World’ that can collapse in one night, as we saw on the night of Monday April 28, 2025.
Freedom of the press, freedom of access to information, an independent judiciary, etc., are threats to the PPP/C’s ‘Fortress World’, hence the relentless attempts to control these and other aspects of the society. Note the Guyana Press Association’s recent rebuke of the President remarks for World Press Freedom Day.
The Second Vice President according to a Demerara Waves article on May 8, 2025, titled ‘Civics to be made required study – Jagdeo’ . The article stated ‘Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday announced that Civics – rights and obligations of Guyanese – would be made a compulsory school subject, even as he admitted that more must be done to tackle poverty among disadvantaged youths’. I think that the government is beginning to understand that their political and governance strategy and approach from 2020 is highly flawed and are now trying to correct course, but this comes a little too late. Hence, we see ‘the rise and collapse of the PPP/C’s ‘Fortress World’ – 2020 -2025.
The PPP’s ‘Fortress World’, while a huge challenge to realizing good governance and a fair and just society, has galvanized the people of Guyana. It has created an excellent opportunity for the next government to develop an approach to governance that is inclusive, equitable and advances the motto: One People One Nation One Destiny.
Yours truly,
Citizen Audreyanna Thomas
