By Roysdale Forde S.C- As Guyana barrels toward elections in less than a month, the actions of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) government have stripped away any remaining pretense, exposing a troubling pattern of misplaced priorities and apparent disregard for the struggles of ordinary citizens.
While families scrape by, unable to afford basic groceries, burdened by soaring utility costs, and left powerless during persistent blackouts, the PPP administration has proceeded with a multi-million-dollar deal involving a little-known Dominican Republic company to supply electricity through Guyana Power and Light (GPL). This is not merely poor judgment — it reflects a profound failure of leadership and a growing disconnect from the realities facing the people they were elected to serve.
Let’s call this travesty what it is: a vicious slap across the face of every working-class Guyanese.
The audacity of Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo to dismiss this deal as “a small amount” is not just tone-deaf; it is a deliberate insult to Guyanese, who toil daily to survive. A small amount? To whom? To the elite cabal feasting in air-conditioned boardrooms while ordinary citizens swelter through blackouts in homes that should be sanctuaries? To the parents forced to choose between school shoes for their children or food on the table? This flippant remark exposes a government so detached from reality it might as well be governing from another planet.
The details of this deal are cloaked in secrecy, shrouded in vague statements and evasive answers, with glaring questions about its compliance with procurement laws left unanswered. It is very clear that this is not about fixing GPL or delivering reliable electricity for people and local businesses. It is more about funneling Guyana’s wealth into the hands of cronies while the masses are left in literal and figurative darkness, with an assortment of stupid excuses from the government. The PPP/C government’s priorities are crystal clear: profit over people, connections over competence, and secrecy over accountability.
As the great philosopher Frantz Fanon once warned, “The wealth of the imperialist nations is also our wealth… The oppressor, in his own sphere, starts the process, a process of domination, of exploitation, and of pillage.” In Guyana, the oppressor wears the guise of elected officials, pillaging our oil wealth while we, Guyanese, the rightful owners, are fed scraps and empty promises.
What has this incumbent regime done with the billions (US$76.1Million per day) pouring in from Guyana’s oil boom? Have they fortified our public healthcare system to ensure no mother dies in childbirth for lack of proper care? No.
Have they curbed skyrocketing food prices so families can eat without fear of bankruptcy? No. Have they reformed GPL to deliver the reliable electricity we deserve? Absolutely not. Instead, they orchestrate backroom deals, flout procurement laws, and treat parliamentary oversight as a mere inconvenience to their unchecked power.
This latest deal with the Dominican Republic company is not an isolated scandal. In fact, it is the latest link in a chain of corruption that stretches back years. Each secret contract, each ignored regulation, each dismissive wave of the hand tells us the same story: they think they’re untouchable. They believe we’re too tired, too distracted, or too powerless to hold them accountable. They expect us to swallow their lies, wave their flags, and sing their praises when they come knocking during election season, treating us like a vote farm to be harvested every five years.
But we are not crops to be reaped. We are not pawns in their power game. We are citizens, taxpayers, and the rightful stewards of Guyana’s future. Our votes are not handouts to be bought with promises that evaporate the moment the ballots are counted. Our silence is not consent. Our patience is not weakness.
This election must be a reckoning. Yes, a thunderous rejection of a government that has grown fat on our suffering while peddling illusions of progress. We cannot allow this band of merry profiteers to continue their charade, playing politics by day and plundering by night. The time for complacency is over. The time for clarity, conviction, and courage is now.
We must demand leadership that respects the people, obeys the law, and puts Guyana first. Leadership that sees public service as a sacred duty, not a personal ATM. Leadership that understands that Guyana’s oil wealth belongs to every citizen, not just the connected few. Leadership that delivers electricity, healthcare, and opportunity without forcing us to beg for what is rightfully ours.
The government’s arrogance has been its undoing. They thought they could hide their deals in the shadows, but the light of truth is relentless. They thought they could silence us with fear, but our voices grow louder. They thought they could break us, but we are unbroken, unbowed, and unafraid.
This election is not just a vote—it’s a revolution of conscience. It’s a chance to reclaim our dignity, our rights, and our future. It’s a chance to say, with one voice, that we will no longer be reaped. We will not be harvested. We will not be silenced.
I urge you that on election day, September 1, let us march to the polls with the fire of justice in our hearts. Let us vote for a Guyana where every child has food, every home has power, and every citizen has a voice. Let us vote for a government that fears the people it serves, not one that expects the people to fear it.
The reckoning is coming. The question is not whether we are ready, but whether they are ready for us. Let us stop the reaping and start the rebuilding. The time is now.
