PNCR says it’s ready to respond to evidence of gov’t good faith
Stabroek News
February 28, 2003
The People’s National Congress Reform says the party will respond positively when there is visible evidence of the government’s recently proclaimed good faith and proof of its intention to join hands to take the country out of the mire.
In a Republic Anniversary message, the PNCR stated that the seriousness of Guyana’s condition as a nation required that “we take stock of ourselves.”
The party said further that in this time of trouble, Guyanese needed to seek guidance and strength from God. For that reason, the party said, it had readily agreed with the Christian community to devote the evening of February 22 to prayer and intercession rather than revelry and partisan politics.
The PNCR contended that it was unfortunate that commemoration of the country’s 33rd Republic Anniversary had come at a time when the Republic itself was under threat, and many of its citizens in unprecedented numbers were faced with severe unemployment and despair.
The party asserted further that in many communities, there was fear and insecurity as the country reeled under an unprecedented wave of violent crime and murder, and noted that since the last Republic Anniversary many innocent persons had lost their lives, including brave members of the security forces.
According to the PNCR, in this most severe of crises, rice farming families were mired in debt, bauxite employees faced a bleak future of retrenchment and uncertainty, ordinary households were coming up against rising electricity tariffs, and there were myriad other problems.
In recognition of that dilemma, the party said, the PNCR had returned to Parliament to debate a motion calling for practical approaches and remedies to deal with the crisis. However, although these matters were debated in the National Assembly, the PNCR stated that it was disappointed to note that its gesture did “not evoke a positive response from the government.”
The party charged that the government had refused to “accept that there is a crisis and in this state of denial has refused to act responsibly for the good of Guyana.”
The PNCR also called on Guyanese not to remain silent but to demand accountability and transparency from the government, and gave its assurance that the party would not abandon its responsibility to the citizens.
