(Kaieteur News) – The central government is systematically crippling local democratic organs, stripping them of revenue streams, and fostering a culture of dependency under the guise of its new “model village” and community development initiatives, according to APNU Member of Parliament (MP) and former Mayor of Linden, Sharma Solomon.

On August 3rd, President Irfaan Ali unveiled the Model Village initiative saying that it will transform communities across Guyana into modern, economically vibrant and socially connected spaces where citizens can live, work and thrive. The initiative, begins with consultations in 23 villages.

Speaking exclusively in an interview with Kaieteur News, Solomon drew sharp parallels between current State interventions and the historic attempts by the British Crown to undermine the post-emancipation Village Movement in Guyana. Solomon pointed to the historic Village Movement, launched after the purchase of Victoria Village by former enslaved Africans, as a gold standard of self-determination, self-governance, and local economic independence. Drawing on historical analysis, he noted that early freed Africans established thriving, self-managed communities encompassing local agriculture, religious life, education, and social infrastructure.