The Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCC&I) is unequivocal in its condemnation of the violence, looting and general mayhem that manifested in Georgetown on Wednesday, July 3.

A release from the organisation’s president, Edward Boyer, noted that the events were precipitated by illegal marches that spiralled out of control when criminal elements went on the rampage storming the Office of the President and burning vehicles and stores.

"Whatever the perceived or real injustices protesters were agitating against, resort to unconstitutional actions is a recipe for riot. Their brutish methods have resulted in deaths and destruction for members of their own ranks as well as innocent citizens," Boyer stated.

And he asserted that "profits and losses have no colour. Guyanese of all races and classes will be affected by the concomitant slowdown in our economy as the business sectors reel from the effects of the current siege it is under."

According to the release, "there can be no significant socio-economic development in a land ravaged by political strife."

The business group said it again calls on "Guyana’s political leaders to heed the consistent and strident calls to background personal and partisan differences and engage in constructive dialogue."

The chamber said it was heartening to hear the US Ambassador give his country’s commitment to assist in upholding the democratic process in Guyana.

Boyer is also calling on the private sector, NGOs and all decent-minded Guyanese to denounce and resist efforts by pockets of criminal elements to impose mob rule in this country.

"It is the rich and powerful who declare war and the poor and powerless who fight their battles. Undoubtedly, the young people of this country are full of energy and passion. Think of the tremendous potential for economic gains that energy can bring about if correctly channeled," the Chamber’s president said.

Further, he posited that politicians who felt that the end justified the means and were prepared to wreck the business climate in Guyana for the sake of achieving power, would preside over ruins.

"Fight your battles at the ballot boxes and give the business community a break, or face certain social and economic disaster," Boyer cautioned.