Caribbean News Now!

by Caribbean News Now Staff

GEORGETOWN, Guyana -- The first of a series of presentations by Guyana's presidential candidates was delivered on Wednesday when the Alliance for Change (AFC) nominee, Khemraj Ramjattan, told the business community that it should play a major role in addressing ethnic insecurity.

Ramjattan charged business leaders to help solve the ethnic divide and to help deliver peace and happiness through reconciliation, unity and harmony.

Alliance for Change (AFC)presidential candidate Khemraj Ramjattan

The AFC presidential candidate emphasised that businessmen and politicians must do everything in their power to create a more enduring trust among all ethnicities.

He added that, if his party is successful at the polls, there would be a total constitutional reform that would see the removal of presidential immunities.

He also said that there is need to cut back government expenditure by scaling back payments to super-salaried consultants and slashing the number of government ministries.

The lectures are being organised by the Guyana Manufacturing and Services Association (GMSA).

The second debate of the GMSA sponsored programme will be delivered by the presidential candidate for the main opposition People's National Congress Reform (PNCR), David Granger, on May 11, while the People's Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) candidate, Donald Ramotar, will speak on May 25.

In the meantime, the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) has admonished President Bharrat Jagdeo for statements made to PPP supporters on March 13, describing his remarks as a dangerous and unnecessary precedent.

The Kaiteur News reported that the decision by the ERC was in response to public comment and opinion that the statement attracted, including accusations that they were racially divisive and inflammatory.

ERC's main concern was a part of the president's speech that stated, "The PNC has just chosen as their presidential candidate a man who was very active in that era, the era of oppression, the era of starving our people, and I say this because they have gone backwards, they have gone backwards to choose someone who is characterized by repression, who has blood on his hands, because the people in Berbice, just here, the people who were killed protecting the ballot boxes, protecting democracy, were killed in full knowledge of people like Granger and others who controlled the political directions of the country at the time... and I ask you make sure that people are educated about that past..."

Jagdeo's statement regarding the PNCR's presidential candidate as having "blood on his hands" is also being questioned.

Reads: 3390


Tweet