Latest update May 7th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 25, 2011 Letters
Dear Editor,
As was reported in the press, a week ago, a candidate’s refusal to debate is not acceptable to many Guyanese.
In the political arena it is best for the electorate to receive as much information on the candidate as possible.
Any candidate who refuses to debate is essentially hiding an attribute that if known, would possibly exclude him from being elected President.
I don’t think that there is a valid reason for any candidate to recuse himself from joining a debate of equals.
If the candidate thinks that the panel of debaters are not worthy of his presence, because they are way below his level of intelligence, then he has a selfish, but valid reason to be skeptical of the event. However, to assist the electorate in making an informed decision, about who would best serve this developing nation, the candidate should fulfill his obligation to debate.
It is not good enough to just be aloof and shrug one’s shoulders and declare that he would not participate.
The query then is, what does that candidate have to hide? Is it that he is afraid that his lack of necessary skills would be revealed?
I have questioned the qualifications (knowledge based) of many who have declared that they want to be president of Guyana without revealing what they have to offer. What are their inner thoughts about the future of Guyana and its current and future issues? Guyana being a multi-ethnic society must have answers to questions related to the country’s ethnicity.
Guyanese cannot continue to vote for someone because they belong to a particular party. We must demand that our questions be answered about what these candidates intend to offer the nation and what are their political values and beliefs.
Questions should be elicited from the general public and be answered by the candidates during the debate. It is imprudent for these candidates to have a trivial discussion amongst themselves on topics that they are familiar with. The public interest must supersede and expose the irrelevant banter and hidden agenda of the candidates. The political position of the candidates, if known, would serve as a guide to the public as to whether the candidate should be elected and/or re-elected in the future.
As a Guyanese, I would like to know how all of the candidates would react if faced with a decision that is complex and does not fall within the purview of their usual everyday discussion or conversation. Too often, we the people, feel that we have been deceived by politicians whom we know little about their significant political attributes and talent.
We the people would like to know how they intend to create meaningful jobs that will serve as an enticement to keep the outstanding students from leaving Guyana within two years after graduation? How they intend to quell the abuse of the police against the public? Are they for or against a free Judiciary that is removed from the control of the politicians (especially the President)? How do they intend to set up a structure of intolerance against rampant corruption, that now permeates, what seems like the whole social structure of this fledgling nation?
A lack of answers to these and more questions leads to remorse, on the part of the electorate, only after we have witnessed the lack of prudent decision-making and knowledge on the part of the elected candidate. The question should be asked, what do I know of those who are vying to be President? Is it not possible to have a repeat in policies of the current government, if those running for the Presidency are allowed to skew their internal positions and hide it from the public at large?
Guyana has too many un-answered questions, that negatively impact the nation, to allow any candidate running for President not to participate in a debate. Debating should be mandatory and not a personal option.
Over the years we have witnessed the deterioration of the standard of living in Guyana. This is in part due to racial voting instead of trying to find solutions for un-answered national issues that go begging within the nation. Instead, we the people, continuously allow the racially constructed parties to dictate the national agenda devoid of inputs from the electorate, and not knowing what the candidates stand for. This behaviour must cease and be replaced by a national consensus that reflects the will and desire of the people of Guyana.
Therefore, to accept a major candidate’s reluctance from participation in a national debate, is to acquiesce that the current political structure is an acceptable position. We, therefore, could learn from a public debate, to do otherwise is to accept the morbid results of the forthcoming elections if the national ambitions and questions are un-answered.
Patrick Barker
GRA catch EXXON trying to hunch GUYANA over 11 BUS dollars in one shot!!!!
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