Guyana Observer News

 By Stella Ramsaroop

Yes, I was a bit more than just tickled when I saw that straight line that stopped exactly along my colleague’s fence. I laughed out loud, examined the photo some more, laughed some more and continued this process for another 10 or 15 minutes. Poor Sweet and Sensitive Freddie Kissoon. The harsh reality, though, is that this situation is no laughing matter. The reason I laughed so much is because no one in their right mind can look at the straight line those stark photos showing Freddie’s uncut canal, after his neighbours had all been nicely cut, and say this was not intentional. If ever there was a show of someone higher up being unhappy at Freddie, this was as obvious as it can get. Moreover, this untoward incident certainly makes it seem all the more suspicious that the attack on Freddie earlier this year also originated from higher up. And why? Because Freddie speaks his mind when he finds governmental actions to be wrong?

By Christopher Ram

Introduction
Sometimes around now, sometimes later, the press and the public are excited when the report of the Audit Office on the accounts of the ministries, departments and regions is tabled in the National Assembly. They feed on reports of Contingencies Fund abuse, unreconciled bank accounts; single sourcing of drugs from the New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation; vehicle log books not maintained and improperly kept stock records. More recently a disproportionate amount of time was devoted in the 2008 and 2009 audit reports on expired air fresheners and Baygon and overpayments of $30,000 and $50,000 for the acquisition of purchases.

By Sir Ronald Sanders

Michael Kirby, a former Justice of the High Court of Australia, drew a recent report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) to my attention. It confirms what Caribbean countries had always heard about the way people of African descent are treated in some Latin American and Caribbean countries, and it also flags-up the legal intolerance and criminalisation of homosexuals and lesbians in the countries of the English-Speaking Caribbean because of their sexual preferences. According to the report, during its 140th period of sessions from 20 October to 5 November 2010, the Commission held 52 hearings and 28 working meetings and concluded that “structural human rights problems still persist in the region.” These include the situation involving people of African descent, women, persons deprived of liberty, and the “gay” community.

Dear Editor,

While the caption of Mr. Hydar Ally’s letter, “There is no perfect individual and, by extension, party or organisation,” (Kaieteur News, November 8), is true, the actual body of his letter is so crippled in its reasoning that it reminded me of the saying: “Better to shut up and let people think you are stupid, than speak up and confirm people’s thinking of you.” Judging from his writings, Mr. Ally is not necessarily a stupid person, but robotic politics can sometimes make you seem that way. Now, contrary to his denial of being a conformist, his praise of democratic centralism as being essential to party discipline proves he is definitely a political conformist who is also being rewarded as a paid PPP apologist. Wikipedia says, “Democratic centralism is the name given to the principles of internal organisation used by Lenninst political parties, and the term is sometimes used as a synonym for any Leninist policy inside a political party. The democratic aspect of this organisational method describes the freedom of members of the political party to discuss and debate matters of policy and direction, but once the decision of the party is made by majority vote all members are expected to uphold that decision. This latter aspect represents the centralism. As Lenin described it, democratic centralism consisted of freedom of discussion, unity of action”.

-suffered brain haemorrhaging

PNCR-1G MP Winston Murray was at press time still unconscious following cerebral hemorrhaging and remained on a respirator in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC). According to a senior medical source, the unconsciousness was caused by cerebral hemorrhaging and not a serious fall as was reported yesterday. The prognosis for recovery was given as poor. Murray, 69, collapsed while standing in a line at McDoom, East Bank Demerara, early Thursday evening and gave his car key to a public-spirited citizen whom he told to take him to the Balwant Singh Hospital. He was later transferred to the GPHC.