Aug 05, 2026 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

(Kaieteur News) – The sinking of the M.V. Barima has understandably produced anger, grief and frustration across Guyana, and in any functioning democracy a credible opposition would be expected to seize upon such a national tragedy and use it to hold the government accountable. That is what politics is about, after all: when an opportunity presents itself, you do not politely ask it to come back another day.

So, nobody should be surprised that the parliamentary opposition and other groups hostile to the PPP/C government have sought to turn the tragedy into a political issue. Governments are expected to answer difficult questions when tragedy strikes, and opposition parties are expected to ask those questions loudly, repeatedly and, if necessary, in parliament, on the streets and wherever else public opinion is formed.