Dear Editor,
It did not take Terrence Campbell, the latest entrant onto Guyana’s political stage, very long to declare himself a “victim.” It made me wonder if this is a genetic predisposition or a general trait of opposition politicians here and abroad. The case of Terrence Campbell certainly bears some investigation.
Campbell began his latest foray into politics with the bold assertion that Vice President, Dr Bharrat Jagdeo had a “genetic predisposition for lying.” This drew a sharp response from Jagdeo, who asked if he was implying that all Indo-Guyanese were liars.
Campbell then pointed out that various businessmen and Jagdeo were not paying taxes. Jagdeo again responded, but Campbell cried foul and whined nationally about the release of his records from the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) while making no comment on the largesse he received from the state.
Campbell then moved to attack Ashni Singh, Claudette Singh, and generally anyone whom he feels deserves it at the time. I see this as fair political behavior and have no quarrel with it. Campbell, however, differs from me, in that, when he is replied to by those he attacks, he whines, cries, and claims he is a “victim.” Is he? As far as I can find out, Campbell became a very successful businessman under successive PPP administrations (Jagdeo and Ramotar). Campbell’s business ran into difficulties during the APNU years (2015-2020) when he stopped remitting VAT collected and altogether declined to pay taxes.
When there was a change in administration in August 2020, Campbell engaged the GRA and was able to negotiate payment of $237 million for outstanding taxes and get a waiver of $138 million in interest and fines. If Campbell was being targeted, I doubt he would have received such leniency.
As I alluded to earlier, Campbell made an earlier foray into politics. In January 2019, Campbell joined a group of Facebook warriors who called themselves RISE, and within hours, he posted, “Today, a knife was stuck into my back by my own people.” Taking the position that the APNU+AFC coalition doesn’t stand a chance in a head-to-head contest with the PPP at this time, Campbell explained that his entry into politics was purely to deny the latter a majority at the next polls and to push for constitutional reform (Stabroek News, 1.8.2019). Interestingly, Campbell did not mention that his entry into politics was followed almost instantaneously by a demand from the GRA for outstanding taxes and unremitted VAT.
Editor, Terrence Campbell makes his views on the Natural Resource Fund and the use of “oil money” very clear. For Campbell, the money should be saved and/or used to capitalize private businesses for higher rates of return. I remain steadfast in my view that it is still too early in our country’s development phase to have an NRF. I wrote in 2012, “The idea of a Natural Resources Fund (NRF) to ‘save’ oil revenues for ‘future generations’ while our children go without now is a product of the elitist mindset of David Granger and his visionless cabal,” and I am yet to be dissuaded from this sentiment.
Terrence Campbell is the latest of the “elites” to arrogate authority to speak for the people of Guyana without a mandate from any section of the electorate; not a single voter has asked Terrence to represent them nationally, as far as I am aware.
Campbell is a decidedly bad candidate for any political office. He exhibits bias that defies logic, good morals, and common sense. For example, when confronted with the fact that his friend, Nigel Hughes, had engineered a dubious claim on 75 acres of land, Terrence countered with “75 acres of bush,” as if it has no value. Overall, it is my view that Campbell is no victim; he is attempting to bully others and simply cries foul when punched in the nose.
Sincerely,
Robin Singh
