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Oct 22, 2008 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom
I am unable to say why no photographs of Bharrat at Granny’s birthday bash have appeared in our newspapers. What I do know is that as long as you pass eighty years of age, every birthday is a blessing in its own way since not many people live that long in Guyana.
Two important Guyanese celebrated their eightieth birthday this year. One of those was business icon and entrepreneur Yesu Persaud.
A great many celebrations in honour of Yesu have been held in Guyana and this perhaps helps to explain why Uncle Freddie is such short company these years. Uncle Freddie was not at celebrations at the Indian Immigration Gardens. He was also not at the Mandir. However, he managed to be present at one of the sumptuous parties hosted for Yesu at the Diamond Community Centre Ground.
It would seem as if Freddie has left the ranks of the working class and is now content to be among the dignitaries and other persons who often frequent the diplomatic cocktail circuit, something that he once boasted he did not attend.
I guess it had to take a Yesu to break Freddie out of his social shyness. Yesu has, throughout his amazing career, been able to mentor a great many individuals and has seen a great many change in moods in persons. At eighty he should be thinking about retirement. DDL should begin the search process for a new executive head.
However, Yesu is still fit for his age and still has a great deal to offer to his companies and countries. He is not likely to retire at all since he is the sort of individual who thrives on hard work and who believes that a man should stay in the saddle until his time comes.
Yesu Persaud is a visionary Guyanese, someone who has worked with all the Presidents this country has known. Thus, his involvement in business has not been circumscribed by the political party in office. Rather, he has shown in and out of season that he is willing to place his skills and resources at the disposal of the Guyanese people.
And this he has done in his long and illustrious career. I wish him all success in the future and hope that in his remaining years, instead of sticking so many cakes as he did for his most recent birthday, he will continue to toast to success in his companies.
I want to give a few examples of his vision. Long before the Europeans published its Green Paper that was to be the precursor to reforms of LOME, Persaud had seen the need for his companies and Guyana to move into value added production in the run industry if the sector was to be kept alive.
Unlike many others who talked the talked about value added production, Yesu and his companies walked the walk. He has managed to carve out for Demerara Rum a special place in the hearts of rum lovers the world over and therefore has put Guyana more on the map than those leaders who blow hot and cold over the Economic Partnership Agreement.
It was a tragedy in Guyana that the government did not seek to involve Yesu in direct consultations over the EPA. Yesu understands Europe; he has friends in Europe and therefore was ideally placed to offer the sort of perspective which can only benefit the political elite in Guyana.
I wish Yesu all the best years ahead and plead with him even though I know it is vain to consider retiring. If you, Yesu, who are so needed in Guyana, can call it a day, it may encourage others who many Guyanese wish to see the backs of, to opt for resignation.
In the meantime, how about dinner? Now that is something that Mr. Big Shot, Uncle Freddie, would not turn down.
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