When the Liberty and Justice Party was launched back in January of 2019, Lenox Shuman presented himself as an Indigenous leader who was going to fight for the rights of the Indigenous people of Guyana. But that façade faded quickly Shuman took a turn and aligned all his movements to reflect the will of the PPP/C. Shuman seemingly forgot about the indigenous people of Guyana and jumped on the bandwagon of the PPP/C even at the level of the 2020 National Recount where he was used as an additional agent for the PPP/C.
When the PPP/C were installed in the seat of government in August 2020, Shuman rejoiced, and acted at all material times as though he was part and parcel of the PPP/C. And when the National Assembly was asked to elect a Deputy Speaker – a position traditionally held by a member of the Main Opposition – Shuman shook hands with the PPP/C and took the seat of Deputy Speaker. But all of that was at a cost. Additionally he voted in accordance with every policy put forward by the PPP/C. Even when Shuman publicly said that the word “Amerindian” is disrespectful, he became mute as the PPP/C went ahead to renamed the “Ministry of Indigenous Peoples’ Affairs” to the “Ministry of Amerindian Affairs”.
Shuman acted as though he was sitting in the seat of government from day one and it went to the point in which he asked not to be referred to when speaking of “the Opposition”. He further asked for his seat to be moved so that he would not have to sit with the other Opposition Members of Parliament. All this behavior came after he not only held the position of Deputy Speaker but he was also employed as Aviation Advisor to the PPP/C installed regime.
Today we see Lenox Shuman crying on Social Media about his job being threatened because of his newly discovered courage to call out the PPP/C. Shuman and Nigel Dharamlall have been locked in a nasty back and forth when Shuman spoke of the fact that the PPP/C promised 50% to Public Servants and then delivered a meager 7% at the end of the second year.
But the fact that Shuman is now speaking out has come under heavy criticism by society at large because it is public knowledge that his term in office is soon coming to an end in Parliament and his replacement will be the new target of the PPP/C. Without the vote of that seat the PPP/C would be in the exact position as the APNU+AFC in 2015-2020, with a one seat majority. So Shuman’s purpose to the PPP/C has outlived its usefulness and the blissful honeymoon that he was enjoying has now come to an end and he is nothing more than deadweight to the PPP/C and they will quickly rid themselves of him.
