US Ambassador meets with AFC leadership…

Nov 24, 2008 News

Good governance, race relations among issues discussed

Last Monday, new US Ambassador John Jones met with the leadership of the Alliance For Change (AFC).
The party leaders, in addition to welcoming him to Guyana, took the opportunity to stress that good governance is becoming an elusive concept in Guyana.

The AFC leadership with US Ambassador to Guyana, John Melvin Jones (centre)

The party executives pointed out that there was a complete disregard of the rule of law and the tendency of the regime to assume autocratic characteristics through the introduction of oppressive legislation.
It was impressed on Jones that the torture of prisoners also seemed to be the order of the day.
Other issues regarding the shutting out of the AFC and GAP-ROAR from the Local Government Reform process, and the lack of political will and/or refusal to institute much needed governance reforms were also highlighted. In this regard, Guyana’s ability to access recourses from the Millennium Challenge Account was discussed.
The party also took the opportunity to apprise the incoming Head of Mission of its ongoing programmes, and the political and economic outlook for 2009 and beyond.
The Ambassador was urged to bring to the attention of the administration in Washington, D.C., the AFC’s strong belief that special attention should be paid to fostering better race relations in Guyana, providing assistance in harnessing the potential of the Guyana Diaspora in the United States, and ensuring that good governance and constitutional reform are treated as imperatives for improving US/Guyana relations.