The AFC notes with great concern the recent announcement by the President and Commander-in-Chief, that Guyana is besieged by terrorists. This statement, in itself, confirms that Guyana has serious governance and national security problems, and that these are not being settled through the normal political channels. In national security parlance it is well established that “one man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter”. Jagdeo’s statement therefore confirms that some group (or groups) is of the belief that the rights and freedoms of citizens are being suppressed or denied, and have decided to take matters into its own hands. This is a terrifying reality for a small, struggling country like Guyana, and does not bode well for the viability of the State, the maintenance of its legitimacy, and the safety and wellbeing of the people. We are in for rough times ahead. Needless to say, foreign direct investment, tourism, and the economy generally, will as a consequence be affected by this announcement that we have active terrorists challenging the political status quo.
The AFC calls on President Jagdeo to tell the nation the truth about the presence of these terrorists and to disclose the names of all the “intellectual authors” and “masterminds” that the nation keeps hearing about, but see no evidence of. We hope that this is not another smoke screen to distract some people, and poison the minds of others, as was the case when similar claims were made of Opposition involvement in Buxton, and of video and audio recordings that were never produced after similar fulminations. If Jagdeo has names, then he must, as a matter of duty, disclose these to the public, and charges for terrorism should be laid.
The AFC has repeatedly warned that the Jagdeo administration’s handling of the national security situation is placing the state and its people in grave peril as the continuous confusion appears to be benefiting someone’s evil political programme. We reiterate our call, which was made at the Stakeholder’s Engagement in April 2008, that the national security jeopardy that Guyana faces has to be tackled in a comprehensive and bi-lateral way, and requires the Security Sector Reform Plan. This administration, being obviously out of its depth, should humble itself and kindly ask the British Government to re- implement the plan before all of us perish. Guyanese deserve to be safe and protected.
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