'Our future is influenced by past heroes and struggles'-- |
'Our future is influenced by past heroes and struggles'--
Minister Nagamootoo
Guyana Chronicle
April 13, 1999
THE struggles of the past by national heroes such as Cuffy and the Enmore Martyrs, fitting illustrations of the struggle against slavery, indenture-ship and colonialism, have served as an inspiration for the achievements of today.
This is the view of Information Minister Moses Nagamootoo, a Guyana Information Services (GIS) release pointed out yesterday.
"The Enmore Martyrs have laid the foundation of the modern and contemporary political movement in Guyana," exhorted Nagamootoo, who was responding to the leader of The United Force (TUF) Manzoor Nadir, and People's National Congress (PNC) member Winston Murray.
The two Parliamentarians, had during the budget debate, used ideology as a "red herring" accusing the PPP/Civic of being socialist in its economic policies, and using an ideological stigma as a necessary obstruction to development.
Minister Nagamootoo speaking in the House on Friday, retorted that the sum total of development must take into account all available knowledge in the world, and not to become narrow or parochial. "...those who have not read Marx or Engels or Lenin or Hegel or Feurbach or Kant, they are all ignoramuses!"
Referring to PPP's backbencher Ramrattan Balkarran who spoke about the transformation of Leguan since the rebirth of democracy in 1992, under the PPP/Civic administration, Minister Nagamootoo said that the developmental process on the island is a microcosm of what has been replicated throughout Guyana.
Despite a negative economic growth in 1998, Guyana was able to achieve an aggregate economic growth of 43 per cent between 1993 and 1998, while the growth rate was minus 10 per cent between 1987 and 1992.
The Information Minister expressed disappointment that the opposition took a condemnatory approach rather than one of constructive criticism.
"That is what I thought the budget debate would be like, that you will look around and see what has been done, criticise the things that have not been done, criticise the things which have been done improperly, criticise the things which have been done with negligence, and like some Members of Parliament, call for appropriate action, but certainly not indulge in an exercise of condemnation."
He attributed this attitude to the large number of young and inexperienced Members of the House, especially from the PNC benches who need better leadership to improve their parliamentary debating skills.
On this score, he commended Alliance For Guyana (AFG) member Dr Rupert Roopnaraine for putting forward constructive proposals to the House. He said that members on the Government benches would be better off if they received constructive criticisms which will help take the country forward.
Referring to the call by Mr Lincoln Lewis of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) to have "constructive engagements" with the Government, Minister Nagamootoo said there is a new mood of reconciliation in the interest of all Guyanese.
