Executive Member of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA), Dr. David Hinds has issued an apology to Afro-Guyanese youth for not doing more for them during the tenure of the former A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) government.
The apology was delivered last weekend at a rally held in Melanie, East Coast Demerara. Dr. Hinds said he remains firm in his decision to offer the apology, even though he continues to face flak from some within his political circles.
He acknowledged that members of the APNU have expressed concern that such a move could be weaponised by political opponents, particularly the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), who may use it to frame the APNU’s time in office (2015 to 2020) as a failure. Dr Hinds, during his Politics 101 show, said that he does not care for those criticisms, arguing instead that acknowledging shortcomings reflects strength.
While contending that the former David Granger-led administration did a fair amount for Afro-Guyanese youth, he conceded that more targeted initiatives could have been introduced. He shared that he is frequently approached by Afro-Guyanese who express disappointment in the Granger administration, believing it did little to benefit them.
Dr. Hinds said he understands these perceptions and admitted that the APNU+AFC government should have communicated its efforts to Afro-Guyanese communities more clearly.
“It is not that the coalition didn’t do anything, but the coalition did not understand the result; did not frame what part of what they’re doing in ethnic terms – they didn’t make it obvious,” he said.
He drew a contrast with the PPP/C, stating that when that administration rolls out programmes for sugar workers or invests in infrastructure within predominantly Indo-Guyanese communities, the messaging is obvious: the intended beneficiaries are Indo-Guyanese.
Dr. Hinds suggested that had the coalition adopted a similar approach, for instance, by distributing land to public servants, the response might have been significantly more favourable.
“If we had done that and said Guyana has a lot of land and we are not able to raise public servants’ wages because of inflation and this and that, but we are going to give each public servant a plot of land [then] you don’t have to go and tell them it’s Black people you’re giving a plot of land.
“We know that public servants are predominantly Black. We could’ve said, look, we’re giving this public servant a subsidy, that is, a plot of land. Then they could not, five years later, say to us, ‘Y’all didn’t do anything for us,’” he stated.
