By Royan Abrams
General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Bharrat Jagdeo has urged the party’s supporters not to be intimidated by the emerging dictatorship and that they welcome those who want to return to the PPP after leaving for the Coalition during the 2015 general elections.
He was at the time speaking to hundreds following a wreath laying ceremony at the Babu John Crematorium to mark the 20th death Anniversary of the late Dr. Cheddi Jagan today (Sunday, March 05, 2017).
According to Jagdeo, if the emerging dictatorship succeeds then Guyana will lose all the freedom gained over the past years and would be enslaved forever.
“So in this situation it is easy to despair or to fall in despondency, many of our supporters are worried but how do you address it…people are looking to the People’s Progressive Party for leadership in this country and we must offer the leadership and we cannot offer the leadership if we are fearful our self, we are the only party that stands up now to this government and dictatorship and we must behave that” he told the gathering.
He encouraged his supporters to lend a helping hand wherever they are to create the strongest PPP ever in the history of Guyana.
Jagdeo said “you join the groups, get the older comrades to come out, get the women to come out and the young people all in a task to strengthen the party on the ground and give leadership in the communities and not to be intimidated by anyone because if we are strong on the ground then they can’t fight and that’s what they are afraid of, they can’t fight numbers and we got the numbers on our side.”
The General Secretary also encouraged supporters to remain open as there will be new members joining the family and they should be accommodating.
“So a lot of people who left and went to the AFC, they all disillusioned and are coming back, so welcome them back into this family, don’t by our attitudes chase them away cause that’s not the Cheddi Jagan way. Don’t by your attitude say that oh is y’all cause this to happen because you want change so look at the change you get. Yes people make mistakes; many acknowledge that so it’s time to strengthen our family by inclusion and by bringing people back to us.”
Former President Donald Ramotar said the late Dr. Cheddi Jagan’s legacy will be alive as long as the Government is oppressing and exploiting Guyana. He said today more than ever, the PPP has been studying the ideas of Dr. Jagan.
“What is most important is his methodology, his approach to problems and his loyalty to the people of our country, working people to the first place but to the nation as a whole and that is what we have to uphold and try to reverse what this government is doing in sugar, in rice, in education. Any part of the world you go to that is developed; you will see they have a high educational standard and a high health service. Here the PPP Government took this country to a level and now they are breaking it down brick by brick by their incompetence and inability to get anything right,” Ramotar noted.
The former president urged that as Guyanese celebrate the 20th death anniversary of Dr. Jagan, all must remember that the best way to pay homage to him is to continue the struggles even more vigorously so that even before 2020 the PPP must return to power.
The 20th death Anniversary of the late Dr. Cheddi Jagan was well attended by the majority of the members from the People’s Progressive Party and former Regional Executive Officer of Region six Dr. Veerasammy Ramayya.
