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July 14, 2002: The Vice Chancellor of the University of Guyana, Dr. James Rose in the Guyana Chronicle of Friday, May 31, 02 in a printed version of his GBC Viewpoint wrote these words; " Today, the state totters at the precipice of self-inflicted destruction. " These are harsh words, not from a PNC supporter, not from a WPA leader, not from an independent analyst but from a friend and supporter of the PPP. Hey, what are friends for? With friends like Dr. Rose, does the PPP need enemies? Or suppose the man is right? Dr. Rose should know everything about the self-destructive nature of the PPP government as we will come to see.
Whatever word you want to use to describe the government, you must agree that it is brave government. The PNC suspends the dialogue, the society is tense, other oppositions groups deride the government for not being democratic, civil society demands good governance, yet in the midst of this crescendo, the PPP government does things that are so undemocratic, so unfair, so unconstitutional, so dictatorial, so distasteful, so morally questionable, so vulgar, so bullying that you wonder if these people aren't self-destructive and are inviting assault on the state. You look at some of the action of the state and you wonder if the PPP has not lost touch with reality, and this is what is so frightening. Let's describe a sad tale of self-destruction.
When the PPP came to power at the end of 1992, after a series of disagreement with the Vice-Chancellor of the Univerity of Guyana, Dennis Craig, Dr. Craig resigned. The feeling was that Professor Clive Thomas should be made the Vice-Chancellor. The government said it favours Thomas but like everybody else Thomas should apply. I asked Thomas to apply but his position was that he should not be treated so discourteously. Thomas did not apply but an extremely good Guyanese did. Professor Rudy James, one of Guyana's early professors in law, like Thomas was part of the broad democratic movement that brought back electoral freeness to Guyana. Professor James was rejected because he was over the retirement years. He was over sixty. Dr. Rose reached retirement two years ago. Like Professor James, he too was ineligible. But unlike Professor James, he wasn't told that.
Last year, Vice-Chancellor Harold Lutchman's contract was not renewed, and senior lecturer, Dr. James Rose was asked to act in his place until a new Vice-Chancellor was found. Two months ago, the Council of the University set up a search committee for a new Vice-Chancellor and advertisements were placed in the newspapers. The acting Vice-Chancellor, Dr. James Rose asked the Council to confirm him. The Council said no. It said like Professor Clive Thomas, he should apply. He disagreed, and resigned. The PPP then got into the act. Mrs. Jagan was furious. There were lots of movement back and forth at Freedom House. That Sunday, there was Dr. Jagan's death anniversary celebration at Babu John at Port Morant. The key PPP players met there and Mrs. Jagan demanded Dr. Rose's appointment. The Council was ordered to go into formal session in two days time. The Tuesday, the Council met and reversed itself. It declared James Rose the Vice-Chancellor. Once again, an eighty-two year old woman from the era of the forties in Guyana instructed the PPP what to do in the year 2002.
But a good Guyanese personality in the Council openly disagreed. Who is this man? Is he a PNC appointee in the Council? Is he a man that does not like the PPP and therefore opposes everything they do? No, this man is a strong supporter of the PPP who sits in the assembly as a PPP parliamentarian. He was a PPP minister a few years back, and he is one of the top lawyers in the Caribbean. Mr. Bernard DeSantos told me he preferred the open and transparent way and for this reason he preferred that there was an application process so the candidates could have had the job in an accountable and transparent manner. He told me such a route would have enhanced the stature of whoever was appointed Vice-Chancellor.
The ghost of Forbes Burnham lives inside of Freedom House. This is exactly the style Burnham used when walked all over the Council. The Council did something proper, Burnham did not like it, he ordered the Council to reverse it. But this is not the point. Even if Mrs. Jagan wanted to walk all over the Council, why young people like Bharrat Jagdeo tolerate this? Why someone like Ralph Ramkarran who is on the PPP executive could accept such crude forms of burnhamisn inside the PPP? Why are the young leaders inside the PPP's corridor of power could tolerate such a reprehensible form of bad governance? What about the PPP's respect for people like Bernard DeSantos? And why is Mr. DeSantos still in the Council?
Just as important, where are the voices of civil society on these acts of bad governance? We in Guyana are in trouble because civil society which we all look to in order to referee the conflict between the political parties are part of the opportunistic culture that pervades Guyana. When this farce was going on UG where was the voice of the private sector that has an ongoing relation with UG? Where was the voice of the Guyana Human Rights Association? No, that group was too busy with its political agenda. Of course the opposition PNC didn't know about the James Rose controversy because it was busy on the streets or maybe it had its own reason for being silent.
We now have a golden opportunity to speak out on bad governance at the moment because we have all reacted against what the PNC has done on July 3. This present time here and now is an opportune moment to ask the government not to tamper with the process of defined procedures. If Professor Thomas had to apply, why not James Rose? If Professor James had reached retirement age, so did James Rose? At least if the PPP wanted James Rose ,then as Mr. DeSantos said, give him the job but let the process be above board, let the Council do its work, let accountability and transparency come into play. But what about the treatment of two of Guyana's most gifted academics, Thomas and Rose? Were they given fair treatment?
And what happens to me in December now that I have spoken out on the James Rose affair and my contract comes up for renewal in December? Well by then I would still be employed because the PPP and PNC and civil society will be locked in intense discussion on good behaviour for Guyana be it opposition, be it government, be it business operations. What do you think? You bet I am keeping my fingers crossed. I hope I don't have to go the UN to ask them to help me keep my job. You never know.