By GHK Lall- I give a much-needed hand to the PNC and AFC. It is timely for both groups are floundering massively. One major bone of contention is leadership, as in who will get the nod to be number one to compete in the looming elections, drawing ever closer. I think that even uber competitor, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, would endorse my recommendation, since there is no joy in a one-party national election, which effectively translates to a one-man election horse race. That is, himself.
Where is the glory in that for a man of the political stature and the grand delusions of General Secretary Jagdeo? I recommend Mr. Carl Greenidge, as the compromise candidate. He is as storied as they come, and has covered a lot of territory in his time. If the names Aubrey Norton and Nigel Hughes are causing so much difficulty, generating so much tension, then why not a consensus leader in Mr. Carl? The omens are helpful, may be ready for a way out of the leadership impasse.
First, if I recall rightly, both Mr. Norton and Mr. Hughes, at different times, have indicated a willingness to stand aside and throw their weight behind another name, one that means something, in that it is viable. It’s a good start.
Second, who has a better name than Carl Greenidge. This Guyanese has been a minister, a CARICOM helper, an ACP worker, and the inspirer behind the now long forgotten Economic Recovery Programme that had its uses even for the PPP. Mr. Greenidge has served honourably and ably as one of the leading PPP men on the border. Yes, that one is right: PNC man Carl Greenidge has been a main PPP man relative to Guyana’s always delicate and intricate border issue. How many Guyanese can say that: a PNC luminary and a PPP border stalwart in the same Sak Fifth Avenue suit.
One of these days, I must summon the interest to inquire of Mr. Greenidge, how he has done the impossible so well, and so often, and so confidently. Meaning, working diligently and successfully as a servant of two masters simultaneously. There is no more arduous and minefield laden job in Guyana than the tightrope that Mr. Greenidge walks. Based on his credentials and work record alone, I place Mr. Greenidge’s name in the leadership hat for the PNC and AFC to consider. Seriously, and not as a matter of formality.
For, third, if the PNC and AFC themselves are experiencing such heavy weather in selecting a leader, and are seemingly hopelessly stuck where they are, at the half year junction in an election year, then outside the two parties is even grimmer. Because if internally there is so much trouble, then how can anyone reasonably expect that Guyana’s disgruntled and undecided voters are going to have the required level of confidence in either Mr. Norton or Mr. Hughes? I take this point farther, and beat it silly. If the comrades who know them, cannot make up their minds about them, then it would be an undue demand, a travesty of conscience, to expect citizens who don’t know them well to take the plunge and vest their votes in them. This is where Mr. Greenidge comes in for favorable mention.
Fourth, in any taking of his weight, his record speaks to a wash of experience, and all at high levels, not party jobs or sinecure jobs. Though I don’t know the man, have never had occasion to speak with him, I think that he is a name to draw more than the regular crowd. Moreover, I believe that he can make the disillusioned in the opposition’s close ranks and far-flung camps feel a bit of excitement, a little lift to get them out of the quicksand in which they have been trapped.
Fifth, this would put PPP big boss Bharat Jagdeo in a bind; or, at least, on the backfoot. Knowing Dr. Jagdeo as well as I do, I will tell all Guyana that he doesn’t like being put on the defensive. A Carl Greenidge consensus candidacy, could force him to shift his eyes and fears from the young fellow, and give Mr. Greenidge a sharp look over. In terms of Jagdeo being in a bind, there is the reality of Carl Greenidge and how much of a load he is carrying for the PPP Government relative to the Guyana-Venezuela border issue. What is Jagdeo going to do? Denounce him? Disparage his work? Disown and dismiss him, as of no account, as not representing a political threat? We may see.
Last, from all appearances, Carl Greenidge has the manure and tenure that could make him a formidable opponent in the upcoming elections. Speaking for myself only, other than for the energies and fight in the WPA’s Dr. David Hinds, this elections season has been flat to boring, anemic to asinine.
PPP General Secretary, Bharat Jagdeo has been lightwork of clearing all in his path, as though he is some combination of King Kong and Godzilla and the Guyanese version of a political Hannibal Lector. For those who see some sense in a Carl Greenidge presidential candidacy, I suggest mailing in sealed ballots to the people who count and consider these things. There! I have done my elections work, now I need to collect from GECOM.
