Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Christopher Ram opposes land rights of Guyana’s indigenous peoples


Peter Persaud: Christopher Ram, in his business page of the Stabroek News (S/N Thursday January 20, 2011), states that the Government plans to spend “Huge sums on the Amerindian land demarcation progress” in his preview of the 2011 Budget
Christopher Ram stated: “The budget optimistically projects the receipts of seventy million United States dollars from the Guyana-Norway Agreement under the Government’s Low Carbon Development Strategy(LCDS). The Government is projecting to spend much of this money on the Amaila falls Hydro power project and huge sums on the Amerindian land demarcation process.”
Mr. Editor, kindly permit me to state the following:
1. Christopher Ram doesn’t know what he is saying and must stop misleading the Guyanese people and the international community with his trash and untruths. He further stated: “when one looks at the Amerindian Act 2006 however, one finds it extremely difficult to see how the process can cost any huge sum of money.”
2. Christopher Ram is all wrong here and should be big enough to accept that this is deception he is deliberately perpetrating on the Guyanese people, as well as the international community. He wrongly justifies the cost for Amerindian land titling, land extensions and land demarcations by quoting sections 59 & 60 of the Amerindian Act 2006 that deal with the procedures when applying for land extensions by an Amerindian village, and land titlement by an Amerindian community. Christopher Ram is at sea where Amerindian land issues are concerned and I challenge him to find out from the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs the cost for Amerindian land titling, extension and demarcation, instead of polluting the Stabroek News’ readership with lies and distortions.
3. Christopher Ram strongly opposes the land rights of Guyana’s indigenous peoples, as well as their social and economic empowerment, since he is questioning the “Huge sums (spent) on the Amerindian land demarcation process.” What would he do then to Amerindians if he gets a ministerial portfolio if the PNC forms the next Government: But that is only a dream. In my opinion, therefore, Christopher Ram is nothing but a wolf in sheep’s clothing where the rights of indigenous people are concerned.
4. Christopher Ram does not want the LCDS funds from Norway to be reflected in the 2011 budget, yet he is a preacher of transparency and accountability. What manner of transparency and accountability is this? What manner of man is this? It is crystal clear that Christopher Ram has double standards, and yet he has the temerity to criticize and condemn the Government, its ministries and officials. While he writes a lot, spewing his trash and lies, he has done absolutely nothing for the development of our nation state. His commentaries lack objectivity since he is political and anti-government.
5. Christopher Ram and others waged a vendetta against Guyana’s LCDS, but they lost quite miserably and that is their place. They believed that Norway would have bowed to their trash and untruths, but Norway knows better and Guyana received its first tranche of funding for the implementation of the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS). What does Christopher Ram know about climate change? He is an accountant.
6. But Christopher Ram is disgruntled and frustrated. He wanted to become president of what he said would have been “an interim Government”. He assisted in crafting the PNC’s 2006 Elections Manifesto, hoping to hold a top Government position if the PNC had won the elections, but the PNC lost the 2006 elections. Is Christopher Ram assisting the PNC with its 2011 elections manifesto? Last year, 2010, he refused the offer to be the presidential candidate for the PNC at the 2011 elections.

6 comments:

  1. This is just another trick that members of the opposition had up there sleeve to try and hit the government with.

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  2. When these people write and publish letters in the daily newspaper i wonder if it is that they cant read or they just blatantly by pass certain information to support the false publication.

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  3. Its becoming obvious that Chris Ram just talks because he has a mouth but he who nothing about what he speaks.With his hatred for the Govt he just criticizes everything that they do

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  4. I think that he doesn't listen to himself when he speaks cause he too would say that he doesn't know what he is talking about

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  5. Ram and other opposing forces are always in the arena of negligence and pure ignorance... The Amerindians are as important as any other race or ethnic group in Guyana. Amerindians were said to be the first inhabitants of Guyana and has managed to utilize our forest resources for decades in a sustainable manner and also introduced some very useful medicinal remedies, craft, beliefs and also dishes to the Guyanese unique culture. Therefore, they deserve rights to land, education and other social services like any other Guyanese. Ram and others lack basic “fair” judgments and vision to see the necessary and commendable efforts by PPP/C Government to make life better for all citizens; both young and old, rich and poor.

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  6. Is he aware that the property he owns is demarcated also. Why deny Amerindians the right to
    physically know the extent of their land. It will allow them to better police their land.

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