Death by Misadventure: - the Rise, Fall and Disappearance of Agricultural Industries in the Rural Communities in Guyana

Death by Misadventure: - the Rise, Fall and Disappearance of Agricultural Industries in the Rural Communities in Guyana with Special Reference to the Local Authority of Golden Grove and Nabaclis Village District.

“The people have been left with no guidance, little training, and believe in a myth that Queen takes an interest in their welfare and is their Champion” . . . VERITAS, The Watchman newspaper, November 7, 1873.

THE BIRTH:
The communities in rural districts were founded on the basis of Agriculture. In fact, Agriculture and not Prostitution, the false claim of the Eurocentric world, is indeed the oldest profession on earth. Perhaps, an Egyptologist would verify the above statement. I seriously doubt the Pharaoh Aha would put up with such a practice. Agriculture in the rural communities in Guyana dates back to the Dutch occupation. That is the era of the beginnings of the enslavement and colonization of our ancestors from the Eastern Coast of the Atlantic Ocean on the plantations in the colonies of Essequebo and Berbice in the seventeenth century and Demerary in the eighteenth century. A great number of our people were farmers. They were captured, stolen and kidnapped from the regions known as the Yam and Rice belt found between the Senegal and the Congo Rivers. Thus, our representatives were allowed to engage themselves in their allotted plots on the slave masters’ estates. Also, governors, such as Gravesande in Essequebo, and Bentinck in Demerary, with the aid of indigenous people, carried out several campaigns against maroons (Runaway slaves) which included such activities as burning the rice fields and other crops of those seeking self-emancipation. In short, contrary to the misinformation and/or miseducation, and/or both, propagated by individuals and now by national institutions in Guyana such as the Guyana Rice Board, that rice was introduced in Guyana by East Indians is part of the grand scheme of things aimed to discredit and/or omit black people all together as a group of having made no contribution whatsoever. This is identified by major Afro centric commentators as “Not out of Africa,” “Not before Columbus” and/or “anybody but Blackman” our ancestral legacy is continually stolen and denied us. This has been fostered facilitated by ignorance of our people. There is an old cliché which states and I am paraphrasing the saying; you can hide things from Black people in plain sight, just put in a book; they never read. If you know me, you will observe that for the most part I have a book and/or some reading material in my possession. It is rarely ever fiction. It is primarily humanities and social sciences. You can’t fool me again. They can’t fool me again.
Moreover, Black People were not sitting around, praying to some God in the sky to send a number of East Indians to the colony of British Guiana to feed them. Such a notion is as ridiculous as it is the ranting of a racist mind-set. It is utter rubbish. It’s absurd. Most racists are devoid of logic, and/or rational thought. Whenever you encounter a racist, you tell them the siblings of your ancestors are their ancestors. If that statement does not work; then be plain - tell them every kind of man known on this earth is a descendant of Blackman . . . if it were accurate that Black people had to wait for East Indians to come to their rescue in British Guiana - well then just how did Black people manage all those 50,000 years without East Indians. Also they would have been no civilizations in “Africa,” “Asia,” “Europe” and “the Americas” in millenniums past. In short without Blackman there would be no human development on this planet. Blackman is the foundation of the human experience. None predates Blackman. Blackman is earth’s rightful ruler.

FIRST RURAL DISTRICT SHOW
An Agricultural and Industrial show was held at Golden Grove on December 7, 1897. It was an astounding success. The exhibits displayed, more than a hundred and twelve years ago, reflected the magnitude of the philosophy of self-sufficiency amongst our representatives. Another show was held the following December at Golden Grove. It appears that the 1898 Show was not as successful as that held the previous year. The major reason given is that a similar show was sponsored by the farmers of the neighboring Victoria Village and held at Belfield on whit Monday 1898. The major esteemed historian Norman Eustace Cameron tells readers - the first such show was scheduled to be held in 1889, in the village of Buxton However, in the aftermath of “The Cent Bread Riots” of March 1889, the colonial authorities’ rescinded permission to stage the event. Readers may wonder - What the Rioting in Georgetown had to do with showcasing the industry of our people? It was simply stated - racism. The colonial government was ever willing to portray black people in bad light and seldom would they grant the opportunity to Black people to showcase themselves as worthy of the heritage of their ancestors of Nile River Valley Civilizations.
Thus, eventually the first rural district show was held at Golden Grove on December 7, 1897. It must be noted the highly esteemed schoolmaster and wordsmith the honorable Mr. Tappin Johnson Elliott was one of the major organizers of the show. Mr. Elliott delivered one of the featured speeches at the ceremony marking the opening of the show. Mr. Thomas Elliott, brother of Tappin Elliott, also a schoolmaster, musician and politician of note were also in attendance. The participants and patrons consisted of the various so-called ethnic groups found in the district and neighboring political boundaries. As many as five hundred products were displayed. Prizes were adjudged and handed out to a number of the industrious folks. The fact that Black People made Curry Powder was very surprising to me. Mrs. Mary Sandy, the daughter of Bentick Sancho and sister of Lambert Tuckness Sancho won several prizes including that for producing Curry Powder and Coconut Oil. It is, thus, accurate to conclude those folks got it right. They are primarily the members of the first and second succeeding generations of the shareholders of Golden Grove and Nabaclis and other communities on the East Coast of Demerara. They were self-sufficient. They practiced self-determination and self-help. They clothed, housed, and nourished themselves. Much respect to them.

THE DECLINE:
The great flood of January 1934 is often identified as a marking point respecting the beginnings of the decline in the fortunes of the Small Farming industry in the rural communities on the East Coast of Demerara. A number of Social Scientists and commentators expressed views that the soil became less fertile in the aftermath of the 1934 Flood. That may have been possible; however, crop rotation, animal waste-matter, and remains of burnt vegetation could have been employed as manure in the attempt to revitalize the land. I am an eyewitness. I noticed as late as January 1969, the farmers of Golden Grove, Nabaclis, Victoria, Buxton and Friendship were still producing vast amounts and high quality of crops and domesticated animals. The manufacture of coconut oil appears to have been the major industry in the three ancestral adopted village districts.

It is my contention; The major factors which gave rise to the decline and disappearance of the Agricultural Industries in the Rural Communities in Guyana are the following;
1. the shenanigans of the two major political platforms,
2. the policies of the National Government,
3. the failure to access to cheap and reliable power supply (electricity),
4. the migration of young people, primarily the males to the major urban centers in Guyana, the Caribbean basin, United Kingdom, Canada and USA,
5. the rise and expectations of remittance,
6. the ill-gotten gains of illegal narcotics trade,
7. loss of self-esteem and self-discipline of the succeeding generations,
8. the aspirations for the so-called white collar jobs such as the Civil Service.
9. The banning of several food items -gave rise to the so-called Black Market Trade,
10. the Guianese Government discontinued The Depot which bought the Small Farmers’ crops in the colonial era as late as 1941.
11. The failure to develop reliable export markets.

THE REBIRTH:
Agriculture; Gardening was very much a part of the curriculum, during my experiences in the school system in the colony of British Guiana (Guyana). Also in the Colonial era in Guyana, there were offices and officials such as the Department of Agriculture, and the District Agricultural Inspectors. The farmers were encouraged to produce by necessity and by the colonial establishment.
Now, I must admit. I am not privy to any program and/or policy of the present administration with respect to Agricultural industries. It is clear to me. The present administration is a failure. The once proud people, with their flourishing agricultural communities are now floundering. They have been floundering for decades. Those rural communities are mired in distress. No change is in sight. Yet you vote for the same people to repeatedly handcuff your socioeconomic development. Who are you? I do not recognize you. What happened to the militancy of the indentured laborers and the slaves? There were hundreds of events between August 1, 1838 and February 1957 in Skeldon which makes me proud of my representatives. There were strikes especially on the sugar plantations and the wharfs. Today, the Guianese people just want to survive to exist like the poor people of USA do on fixed income and act like they are about some thing tangible. They are not even fooling themselves. They are just wishing the situation changes and/or hoping international pressure would extricate them from the decades’ old nonsense that they allow to be propagated against them. Old Ramjeet of Plantation Port Mourant, John Ramballi at Plantation Skeldon, the stalwarts at Plantation Non Pariel in October 1896, the ole Bengali Bechu and numerous others whom the Europeans addressed as Ring leaders would not have sat still with their hands clasped. They would not have been quiet as this lot is today in Guyana and elsewhere.
The ministry of Agriculture seems to be just for show. What are they doing to earn the taxpayers’ money? They are all frauds. I suggest the philosophy of Jerry Rawlins is applicable. At least they could; they should go out of their way to challenge every village in the rural communities to produce, to practice animal and plant husbandry in a major way and thereby become as they once was the breadbasket of the English Caribbean Basin. The ministry of agriculture must lead the charge in this effort of reclamation. Guyanese have become increasingly dependant on foreign products. I charge a consumer mentality does’ not augur well to foster an atmosphere which give rise to developed nation status. The applicable government agencies and/or officials must engage the communities of the rural districts and challenge them to reproduce perhaps as it was in the beginnings of the twentieth century. The government must do its part. They must ensure Guyanese have access to cheap and reliable sources of electric power supply and scientific testing of soils to enable a wider variety of tropical produce. Also, the mountainous and sandy regions must be investigated as sources for subtropical agricultural production.
However, the onus falls upon the people of Guyana, more so the occupants of the rural communities to shoulder the burden to facilitate self-dependence. The international acclaimed historian The Most Honorable Dr. Walter Anthony Rodney (1942-1980) PBUH tells readers a Chairman of the Victoria Institute in April 1919 remarked, “Georgetown looks to the East Coast to decide its political matters” and the facts did bear out this situation. I have identified Hubert Alfred Thompson the remarkable schoolmaster of St. Andrew’s Church of England School at Plantation Cove and John and renowned musician as the orator and thinker who made the utterance.

Recommended Reading:
Rodney, Walter, “the Mass in Action” in the Lamming, George and Carter, Martin (editors) [1966] New World: Guyana Independence Issue