I was shocked to hear some of what this gentleman had to say

Aug 02, 2018 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,
The dust has now settled on the National Toshaos Council (NTC) Conference of 2018. It was the twelfth such Conference to be convened here in Georgetown to date.
I sat in the back row of the Arthur Chung Convention Centre and listened to the now former NTC Chairman Joel Fredericks as he addressed an audience among whom sat His Excellency President David Granger, Honourable Moses Nagamootoo, Prime Minister, almost the entire Cabinet of Ministers, leading members of the Diplomatic Community, Heads of State Agencies and newly elected Indigenous leaders from all across Guyana.
I was shocked to hear some of what Mr. Joel Fredericks had to say. This gentleman – a pastor – whom I have over time come to call friend, literally transformed right before my very eyes! He abandoned truth; exited reality and lunged blindly into an area of darkness that was devoid of the sincerity and humility, which drew me to him and formed the basis for our friendship.
Joel accused the Government of Guyana of: “…failing to keep several promises including addressing land rights …the lands commission, revision of the Amerindian Act,… granting of the title for the land on which the NTC Secretariat would be built and the renaming of St. Cuthbert’s Mission to Pakuri…”
Land rights and Land Commission:
The fact of the matter of land rights is that the President established a Presidential Commission of Inquiry (COI) in March of 2017 to address this matter, which is known and understood to be of utmost importance to Guyana’s Indigenous Peoples. In so doing, His Excellency was fulfilling a commitment made to the NTC in 2015.
This COI was rejected by the NTC under the Chairmanship of Brother Joel Fredericks without the suggestion of an alternative mechanism for the achievement of the same or an even better outcome. In fact, the prompt public support, which came from the opposition People’s Progressive Party (PPP) openly suggests the source or origin of the NTC’s position under Brother Joel’s leadership.
In a statement issued on April 5, 2017, the PPP said: “The People’s Progressive Party wishes to publicly express its unequivocal support for the National Toshaos Council’s (NTC) public condemnation on March 28, 2017 of the establishment of the Commission of Inquiry “to examine all issues and uncertainties surrounding the claims of Amerindian land titling…”
The COI has since proceeded to address the other components of its mandate and will shortly report to the President. Meanwhile, the Indigenous Peoples population has lost this opportunity to have the very important land issue investigated beyond the scope of the Amerindian Land Titling (ALT) Project, and titles fast tracked. The newly elected Executive Committee’s leadership on the matter is eagerly awaited.
Revision of the Amerindian Act:
The consultative process leading to the revision/strengthening of the Amerindian Act is ongoing. The process commenced with a consultation in Santa Rosa, Moruca, Region One in April. At the time of Brother Joel’s attack on Government, there were at least two completed rounds of consultations. There was a deferral of additional rounds of consultations to accommodate the NTC conference attendance. The process has since resumed.
Granting of title for the land for NTC’s Secretariat:
It is no secret that His Excellency President Granger committed to assisting the NTC with land for the establishment of its secretariat. It is no secret that he fulfilled that commitment. Brother Joel was present at the turning of the sod.
Brother Joel was briefed by the Ministry of the Presidency on what steps he was required to take to conclude the process for the issuing of title. He did not take those steps. He chose instead to say what he said at the conference, much to his own discredit.
Renaming of St. Cuthbert’s Mission to Pakuri:
Brother Joel was still Chairman of the NTC on July 15, 2018. He ought to have known, therefore, that the consultative process to obtain the Free Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) of the general village population on this very important and sensitive matter concluded on that date.
He should have been informed by his Vice Chairman, the past Toshao of that Village, that there was a General Village Meeting on 15thJuly, at which the residents roundly rejected the call for a name change. They contend that their immediate past Toshao was on his own pushing Government to change the Village name so that he could satisfy his personal ambitions.
It is the will of the people that the name of the Village shall remain St. Cuthbert’s Mission.
In conclusion, my dear friend and brother has done great harm to his own public image by reporting inexactitudes and using them in an attempt to discredit the Government of Guyana. He has committed another grave sin: he has used a public podium to attack a sitting Head of State in his presence and in public using untruths and making claims, which he knows that he cannot substantiate in this life or the other.
Sincere is my hope that he was not misled by someone whose political ambitions exceed his capacity for leading a little village.
Yours faithfully,
Mervyn Williams

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