The quandary of the Guyanese electorate
Peeping tom…
Kaieteur News – The discovery of oil was supposed to be Guyana’s golden goose, a promise of prosperity and national upliftment. But for the electorate, it has become something else altogether: a trap set between a government that refuses to renegotiate for fairer terms and an Opposition that offers little more than a plan as unsure as a child’s first steps. It is, as they say, a case of being between a rock and a hard place, with no clear path to brighter days.
The Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) between the government of Guyana and the oil companies is as lopsided as a tilted coconut tree. From the outset, the terms have favored the oil companies, leaving the government little room to demand better. But that is not the entire story. The real leverage lies with the government’s power to approve or deny the Field Development Plans (FDPs) that dictate the pace and scope of oil extraction. Six of these plans have already been approved, and another project looms on the horizon like an ominous thundercloud. Each time, the government has rubber-stamped approval without pushing for better terms or insisting on critical measures like ring fencing, a provision that would ensure that each project is financially distinct from the others, thereby preventing the blending of profits and losses.
It is a perplexing stance, particularly when one recalls that this very government, in its days of opposition, was vociferous in its criticism of the PSA’s shortcomings. Then, they spoke the language of justice and fairness, of extracting what is rightfully due to the people of Guyana. Yet, upon gaining the reins of power, they seem to have misplaced that dictionary, choosing instead a lexicon of dismissiveness and expediency. Ring fencing, once championed as a necessity for protecting the national interest, has now become a ghost in their vocabulary—a concept that once haunted their speeches, now conveniently vanished.
And yet, one might ask, what of the Opposition? Surely, in a democracy, the checks and balances do not rest with one hand alone. But the Opposition seems to exist on a different plane, in a world where problems are acknowledged but never quite grappled with. They have proposed a 20-point plan for the oil sector, a plan that, at first glance, suggests a willingness to address the flaws of the PSA. But on closer inspection, it speaks only of reviewing the agreement, not of fundamentally changing it. Reviewing, in the parlance of politics, is often just a softer word for treading water—moving without truly progressing. And so, the people find themselves stuck with a government unwilling to demand more from the oil companies and an Opposition that offers little more than platitudes.
For the Guyanese electorate, the reality is bitter. They face a government that, despite its power, refuses to use its leverage, and an Opposition that, despite its responsibility, refuses to think boldly. This is the kind of politics that leaves people stranded. They lose with the government, and they lose with the Opposition. It is a predicament that one would scarcely wish upon a neighboring nation, let alone one’s own.
There is a sadness that comes with realising that neither of the major political players is truly committed to safeguarding the nation’s interests. For a country on the cusp of a transformative oil boom, the stakes could not be higher. The promises made during campaigns, the grand visions of a prosperous and equitable future—they now ring hollow.
One cannot help but marvel at the irony of it all. A government that once decried the lack of ring fencing now dismisses it on the basis of protecting the sanctity of contracts, a pitiful excuse if ever there was one. The Opposition, which might have seized the opportunity to propose a bold reimagining of the PSA, offers instead a lukewarm review. It is more than likely that the government will approve the seventh Field Development Plan without pushing for any meaningful changes while the people are left wondering what happened to the dreams of a better future.
The greatest tragedy in this tale is not merely the failure of one party or the inadequacy of another—it is the erosion of faith in the very idea that politics can be a tool for betterment. It is the realization that the electorate’s interests can so easily be sidelined by those they entrusted with power. The people of Guyana deserve leaders who will fight for their fair share, who will see the resources beneath the sea not as a quick windfall but as a lifeline for future generations. They deserve more than empty words and lackluster plans.
But for now, they remain caught between two forces that seem to pull in different directions but ultimately lead to the same place: a status quo that benefits the oil companies far more than the nation. They lose with the government, whose inaction is as puzzling as it is predictable. And they lose with the Opposition, whose detachment from the reality of the people’s needs makes them just as culpable. It is a hard place to be, no doubt. But in the end, the weight of it all falls squarely on the shoulders of the ordinary people, who are left wondering when—if ever—they will see a day when their leaders put their interests first.
