Buxton Buxton- Friendship Express

Published by Buxton-Friendship Heritage Fund, Inc.

July 2013

Freedom to Celebrate

Our Heritage
Buxton-Friendship Heritage Week

July 25 August 3, 2013 Milestones to Freedom: Resistance, Resolve, Emancipation & Entrepreneurship
In just a few days, festivities to commemorate a number of milestone achievements in Guyana will get going. Our Buxton-Friendship community will join the rest of the country in celebrating the 175th anniversary of Emancipation, 190th anniversary of the Demerara Revolt, and 250th anniversary of the Berbice Uprising. These events will be observed during our 3rd annual Heritage Week activities. Ninety years ago, on the 7th day of this month, the illustrious Buxton Scholarship was established. We will commemorate this milestone with several activities that will involve and benefit young students in the village. They include a Debate Competition, Culture Camp, Pool Picnic, Learning Tour around New Amsterdam, and Tree Planting Exercise. Other activities for this years Heritage Week include the showing of a Documentary Film: The Wonders of Africa, a Gala Dance at Tipperary Hall, a Party for senior citizens, an African Cultural Fair, Sporting Events and a Church Service. There will also be special events in the village on July 31st and August 1st to mark Emancipation. These activities are being organized by the First of August Movement. Detailed information on the activities are listed on the back page.

Buxton Heritage Group Bush Cook

Saturday, August 24. 2013 from 6:00 p.m. Lorna Campbells Residence 454 Vermont Street Brooklyn, NY 11207 Succulent Dishes Tasty Snacks & Drinks
Onekos Stereo Choice

is having a

Top Stories: 3rd Annual Heritage Week festivities set to kick off Photos of Graduation & Prize Giving ceremonies On the eve of the 175th E m a n c i p a t i o n Anniversary, Rennie Parris regenerates an interesting article CIMBUX President, G l a d st o n e M a rc us weighs in on the Turmoil controversy Quintin Bacchus fires back at CIMBUX directors In this issue:

Graduation Exercises Friendship Primary

2-3

Company Road Primary 4 Buxton Primary 5 Rennie Parris Column: Emancipation Review Is CIMBUX in Turmoil? Marcus Weighs In Denying Reality Calendar of Activities General Information 6

Jokes, Nancy Stories & More

Quintin Bacchus Responds: 10 12 12

Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Friendship Primary School Graduation

Dencia Phillips Valedictorian and Best Student in English and Science.
Dencia topped the village in this years National Grade Six Assessment and secured a place at Bishops High School in Georgetown. In this photo, District Education Officer, Mr. Loren Parks presents the trophy to Dencia.

[Left Frame]Headmistress Karen Day presents Lanaiha Clarke with the prize for Best Student in Social Studies. Lanaiha finished 3rd overall and qualified for Annandale Secondary School. [Right Frame]: Dressed in graduation gown, Kenisha Phillips receives her certificate from Ms. Andella Moore.
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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Friendship Primary School Graduation

James Freeman, an aspiring medical scientist receives his trophy from PTA member, Margot Bobb. He finished in second place and is going on to Presidents College

All photos, compliments of Rollo Younge

Buxton-Friendship Restoration Committee

Presents a Pre-Emancipation Gala

Saturday, July 27, 2013 Tipperary Hall

Buxton Middle Walk

Fashion Show & Dance

from 9:00 p.m. Just off Buxton Public Road

Lexus Band Determine Sound System

Ticket GY$500 / US$5 Cash Bar Phone: 220-3411 * 274-0052
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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Company Road Primary School Graduation

Company Road Primary School had its annual graduation exercise on Sunday, July 7, 2013. Photos, compliments of Rollo Younge.

Valedictorian

Tishuan Rogers
receives her certificate from Ms. Jennifer Cumberbatch, Guest Speaker at the ceremony.

Tishaun Rogers presented with the prize for Best Graduating Student by Ms. Ulanie Prass.
Tishuan will enter St. Joseph High School in September.
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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Buxton Primary School Graduation

Sadia Nedd
(right), Valedictorian and Best Graduating Student in Science flashes a broad smile as she receives her trophy

Graduate Class of 2013

Photos, compliments of Rollo Younge.

Published by Buxton -Friendship Heritage Fund, Inc.

Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Rennie Par r is Column

So much Seems to hav e Gone Wrong
Emancipation so much seems to have gone wrong. In this pre-emancipation edition of Buxton-Friendship express, I share the Kaieteur News editorial of August 1, 2009. It may have its flaws, but it is loaded with striking information for us. The editor wrote: Today is a significant day in the lives of a significant number of Caribbean people, the descendants of a people whose ancestors came to this part of the world as slaves. These were the people who worked in the fields to produce for everyone but themselves and when they lagged they were beaten. Some were killed for challenging the then establishment for the very things that we take for granted todaythe right to speak, to assemble, to worship and even to entertain. One could only imagine what August 1, 1834 in this country must have been like. Certainly there would have been no buntings and streamers in the form of decorations; there would have not been any roaming the streets, limited as these were in the colony and of course, there would have been apprehension. The people would have heard by word of mouth and perhaps from the various missionaries, that they would be freed men by midnight of July 31, 1834. But in those days, unlike now, people counted each day from sunrise, so that the slaves would have waited with bated breath for the dawn. Yes, and this is what is causing some confusion with the reckoning, there was word that while the slaves were to be free as from today, they were to be taught to work for themselves. This could be nothing more than an insult. These were the people who were doing all the work. Unless the belief was that they were incapable of thought and therefore could only work under supervision, only then could the white overlords decide that the slaves needed to be trained to live as free men and women. This period was to have been for four years but it did not last the full four years. But during that time the newly-freed slaves were still whipped for perceived infractions. However, the history of the freed African-Guyanese begins either from August 1, 1834 or from August 1, 1838. The villages emerged with Plantation Victoria being the first. These purchases accrued from the saving of those people who had buried their money in the ground, waiting for a chance to own property. One could imagine the period of imitation when the freed slaves decided that the only way to survive was to emulate the colonial rulers. They began to dress like the rulers and later, when they were free to access education, they studied to become their former rulers. They did come a long way, from the people who fashioned the canals and the sea defence; who laid out the various fields; and who kept the colonial masters alive by feeding his vast wealth. The descendants of the slaves were not only land owners, they became the doctors and the teachers and the nurses and the lawyers and the civil servants. There were those who hated the land so much that they moved away. But for the vast majority in the villages, the land was their salvation. They fed themselves and their families; they kept the markets alive and fed so many others. They were the backbone of the villages.

Emancipation

Today, 175 years later, or as some believe 171 years later, so much seems to have gone wrong. The farmlands aback of the villages are veritable jungles and the children of these landowners are almost mendicants. They walk the streets and beg rather than till the soil and not only put food on their table but also put money in their pocket.
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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Emancipation
Continued from previous page

No longer can the African Guyanese lay claim to the public service which he once predominated. Other race groups are now in the public service. To get there they pursued their academic programme burned the midnight oil while many African Guyanese hit the streets. We cannot help but note that each year the observance of emancipation becomes more

muted. It is as if the descendants of the Africans are at a loss about the reason for the activity. And this would only change if the parents and elders make a special effort to let the young remember the lessons of the past. There is a saying that those who forget the mistakes of the past are bound to repeat them. The African Guyanese seems to be forgetting the mistakes of the past. He is forgetting the days

when he laboured for nothing but for a place to rest his weary head and a mess of pottage. He seems to be gravitating to those things that are so ethereal, so nebulousthe riches from the high life of wine, women and song. But for those who remember the lessons, there is a lot that they need to do to consolidate their place on this plot of land called Guyana.

ACDA Emancipation Programme Launched

Guyana Times July 10, 2013 Eric Phillips speaking at the launching of the 2013 Emancipation Day activities at ACDAs Akwaaba Centre on Wednesday The African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA) will be celebrating the 175 th emancipation anniversary with a series of activities to commemora te the histo r ic occasion. ACDA rolled out activities planned for Emancipation Day 2013 under the theme Honouring our heroes of 1823, at the newly-opened Akwaaba Centre on Wednesday. The word Akwaaba means welcome. Speaking at the launch, ACDA executive member Eric Phillips said this year the association is celebrating its 20th anniversary, and will be hosting its 19th Emancipation Day festival at the National Park on Freedom Day. He said the national holiday is a

ACDA launches Emancipation programme

very special event and is being celebrated in a significant year, which is also the 175th anniversary of emancipation, and the 250th anniversary of the Berbice Slave Rebellion. ACDAs newly-opened Akwaaba Centre This year, Freedom Day also falls on the 190th anniversary of the Demerara Rebellion, which occurred in 1823. As tradition, ACDA will be honouring an African country, and this year, the country to be honoured is Mali in West Africa. Mali, West Africa is the home of the famous Timbuktu libraries and Africas most mystical tribe. ACDA traditionally chooses one of the countries in Africa and honour it, he said. ACDA celebrates an African country annually because most of the Guyanese who are of African descent cannot link their ancestral roots to a particular nation. Hence, he said the aim is to educate both the young and old

about African history and traditions and to remind people that Africa has 54 countries and is not a single nation like the others. This year, ACDA will also be celebrating Farm, on East Bank Essequibo, a village won by Africans in 1877. ACDA believes that one of the greatest entrepreneurial acts by freed Africans in world history was the village movement which started in 1839. The movement saw liberated Africans combining their resources to buy villages so that they do not have to return to plantation life and cheap labour.

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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Is CIMBUX in Turmoil?
From the President of CIMBUX

- Turmoil
Having read the articles offered by Dr. Clayton Bacchus and the listed CIMBUX Board of Directors in the May and June 2013 issues of the Buxton Express Newsletter, respectively, I feel an obligation to reiterate my warning to membership that the CIMBUX organization is indeed in turmoil and the attempt to whitewash the mischief of the Past President and his cohorts is bordering on an insult to the intelligence of Buxtonians. The record was not set straight as claimed by my friends. After a year and an a half of unabashed attempts to denigrate CIMBUX and thereby derail my Presidency, the self-described Past President and his Directors undertook a brazen attempt to force an illegal election. My response was to call on the general membership to stand up and take back this organization. Membership responded by turning out in full force and killing the attempt, which was in violation of the Bylaws of the organization. I laid out clearly the irregularity of the Board action in calling a SPECIAL Board meeting without notifying ALL Board members and without giving five days notice, and membership essentially instructed the Board to go back to the drawing Board and get its act together. The response to Dr. Bacchus argument was lacking in substance and constituted a series of assertions that I will

answer from my vantage point as President. The Board asserts that If Dr. Bacchus had attended any of CIMBUXs regular monthly Board meetings, he would have benefitted tremendously from observing how CIMBUX functions. The fact is he would have observed just what he concluded. He would have observed that the monster egotism, as he described it, disrupted the work of the organization. The Past President, he would have observed, has a fetish for delivering the same tired lectures of his past experiences. Several Directors have complained about this behavior pattern but none of these Directors has been willing to stand up and challenge this backward looking, time wasting practice which has almost always left the business of the meetings largely unfinished. Dr. Bacchus would have seen members absent without the courtesy of a notification and members who have no clue what happened at the last meeting. He would have observed meeting minutes that were missing or significant in their omission of what transpired at these meetings. The renegade behavior of certain members, including the Past President, was never documented, despite the direction of the President. Dr. Bacchus would have observed the Past President come to the meeting with a laundry list of motions intended to thwart the efforts of the President. He would have observed a disgraceful willingness on the part of certain Directors to rubber-stamp the shenanigans of this Past President. None of these antics bear any resemblance to efforts

that serve the interests of the organization or of Buxton. Dr. Bacchus would have observed a deep fear of bringing new members into the organization and a desire to keep the Board entrenched and locked in to a narrow vision of the organization. Dr. Bacchus was astute in his assessment of the state of affairs of CIMBUX. The May 4th general meeting put on display individuals who have too long been Directors and appear to have a personal stake in excluding other Buxtonians who wish to serve and give back to their community. They sought to justify their extraordinary disregard for the governing document with contorted and unconvincing arguments. They failed to defend the document they spent many months reviewing. They refused to hold membership meetings to keep members informed. A fair examination of this state of affairs will find nepotism an apt description of the scheme to handpick individuals and manipulate or coerce them into positions that decent people would find objectionable. The Directors assert There is a reason the founders of CIMBUX articled the organizations Board to consist of eleven Directors. This is to prevent any one or few Directors from dominating the organization. Strangely, this is precisely the state of affairs in CIMBUX. For the past year and a half CIMBUX has operated with two Directors short, in spite of this Presidents attempt to fix it. The Past President has been whipping out motions,
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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Marcus: CIMBUX Indeed In Turmoil

Continued from previous page

which I regard as poison pills, and the rest of his team have simply rubber-stamped them, even in the face of the dire warnings of this President. This Past President, in the dead of night, has inserted revisions into the Bylaws that serve his interest of controlling CIMBUX. Not surprisingly, the listed Directors failed to detect the questionable entries. The Past President has already implemented this highly unusual way of hijacking the organization, and some otherwise good people have been following blindly. The founders of CIMBUX would have frowned upon this Board that refused to let others in. The Directors article also asserts that some disagreements exist between some members on the Board and the President. The word some is an obfuscation to mask the obvious and even illustrates the confusion amongst these hijackers. When I declared at the May 4th meeting that the real conflict in CIMBUX was between this President and the Past President, one Director immediately yelled no and another said yes, emphatically agreeing with the President. So, amongst themselves, this core group does not have its story straight. The disagreements have been significant and have all been manufactured by the Past President whose imagined presidency of CIMBUX has been slipping away with his carefully cultivated flock. The achievements of CIMBUX stand largely as a testament to the loyal support of membership.

They always rally to the call for support. It is instructive, even amusing, to see individuals scurrying with renewed energy after the May 4th light was shone on their questionable behavior. Suddenly, everyone including the Past President has been rushing around attempting to push the projects they have been guilty of delaying and undermining. The focus and admonishment from Membership on May 4th has been a spur to action. Membership is demanding an organization worthy of the 40 years of institutional experience that should have been harnessed and leveraged for significant progress for Buxton. Is there turmoil? The general membership has agreed there is and they stopped the purveyors of this turmoil in their tracks. In my opinion, the message has not fully registered on these Board members. They seem stubborn in their resolve to keep the Board a private affair where they handpick members, regardless of their competence and commitment to the mission of the organization. Nepotism I have called it and it needs to be arrested for the good of the organization. I trust that the general membership is sufficiently awake and ready to pull this organization from the jaws of a very sad episode in its history. The spectacle of the past year is nothing short of a failure to stay on course to achieve the mission of improving Buxton. Voting in lockstep with the Past President is, in my mind, a form of gangsterism that good and decent people should eschew with all their might. The key to change is for membership to COME OUT AND

VOTE their conscience. As a teacher of eight years in the Buxton community and as a proud Buxtonian, I have touched the talent, ingenuity and excellence of a number of minds, young and old. These Buxtonians deserve that we set our sights much higher than the limited vision of the present troupe. I do believe we can do better. CIMBUX deserves better than the petty politics and egotism that impede its progress in this 21st century. There is too much work waiting to be done for Buxton and too many wasted opportunities. Now, more than ever, membership has to step up and save the organization from selfdestruction. My Presidency has been bad news for the status quo. After five or so years as Secretary and President, I have dealt with the challenges of the organization and I would be failing the people we purport to be helping if I did not expose this turmoil and give membership a chance to FIX it. I am confident they will. On July 20, 2013, CIMBUX will get the Board it deserves, if membership will come out and participate in the discussions and elections. Term limits and the frequency of general meetings should be high on the agenda at this meeting. Membership picked this new date for the General Meeting and Elections. I will be there to answer the hard questions. The Board should be there to be accountable to Buxtonians. I will be there.

Gladstone Marcus

(President)

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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Denying CIMBUX in Turmoil-

Denying Reality
Dear Editor: I write in reference to the collective response by seven directors of the CIMBUX Board to my May 2013 column: CIMBUX in Turmoil. This caption was derived from a widely-circulated letter authored by the president of that organisation, and it was the catalyst for my subsequent enquiry and article. What is Turmoil? The Oxford Thesaurus lists the following synonyms: Upheaval, turbulence, tumult, disorder, disturbance, ferment, chaos, mayhem." President Marcus missive sets the following scene: If you could sit in on our recent meetings, you would compare them to war zones where rudeness, uncontrolled behavior and non-cooperation are worn as a badge of honor. I happened to observe similar conduct by members of the Board at the May 4th general meeting and reported it in my article. Furthermore, I also came to learn of this as a consistent pattern of behaviour during conversations with one of the directors. This director also went on to reveal that due to the constant upheaval, there was very little substantive business to record in the minutes of many meetings. They question: He quoted the president extensively, but did he speak to any other director who currently serves on CIMBUX board of directors? The answer is a resounding YES! More than one member of this gang of seven has grumbled to me and other friends about the autocratic and stifling behaviour of the past president as well as other goings-on within the directorate. Ironically, soon after the June board meeting where their response was ratified, I was apprised of the failed motion of noconfidence to oust President Gladstone Marcus. He was unavoidably absent from the deliberations that day. That proposal, allegedly the brainchild of the past president, was reportedly rejected by the board, in spite of prior assurances of support given to him by the gang. During the disclosure, I also learnt that some directors even labeled the move as malicious. They undoubtedly failed in their erstwhile campaign to besmirch the character and competence of Marcus. They also shattered the confidence of their commander by chickening out on his motion to topple the sitting president and ultimately install himself or one of his robots. Now to appease his wrath and feared vengeance, they are trying to use me as their scapegoat. The scrambled offering by the gang is another pitiful voyage by these sycophants who place opportunism and blind loyalty above soundness of reasoning, good conscience and plain truth. Evidently, there was no thought process put into their hollow response to the serious concerns levied by the president. Instead, they littered their response with the boneheaded defense of displacement - taking out their frustrations on the messenger. In the process, this fairy circle did not only illuminate their petty and narcissistic thinking but they were able to expose their own ineptitude to handle the TRUTH. They had an opportunity to explain the glaring inadequacies that afflict the organisation, and they blew it. It was a dereliction of duty! These directors can continue to fool themselves by pretending that all is well and good, when in reality, turmoil fills the air. One does not have to be a social scientist to figure out that the organisation is beset with strife and turmoil. To deny CIMBUX is in turmoil is to deny reality! We know why these people are not coming cleanthey are ashamed that one of their own has exposed their game. It is shame that rushed them into a panic response. This self-serving bunch is very busy feeding their inflated egos with self-praises as they continue to misrepresent their mediocre performance as high standards. They go out of their way to take credit for rare and insignificant accomplishments while their mountain of failures is blamed on other people.
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Buxton-Friendship Express

July 2013

Denying Reality
Continued from previous page

The authors wasted no time in creating school yard style petulance when they commenced their diatribe with insincere praises for my expertise and soon after flagrantly ascribed to me the assertions made by the president and chief spokesperson of CIMBUX. They did not miss a beat when it came to whining and throwing temper tantrums. Did they know that it was the President of CIMBUX who sent out the letter stating that the organization he heads is in turmoil? Did they attend the meeting on May 4th when the President stood up in front of 61 members and vehemently declared that the organization was in turmoil? Of course! I ask them: Why at the May general meeting, a majority of the membership present concurred with and supported the president? For nothing but self-serving reasons, they chose to side step these facts and attack me. It can only be a stupidly-conceived reason that they believed I would have buckled to their poor attempts to emasculate the truth. Did they really believe their reckless diversionary ploy would go unnoticed? Buxtonians have seen right through their desperate cockand-bull story.

Instead of entertaining r ec omme nd a tio ns tha t th e organization develops a 21 st Century business approach in its operation, they elected to continue running the 40-year entity like a cake shop. I tell you, Mapow Choy must be looking down and crying shame on them. What a waste! It is no secret that the malaise and dysfunction that infused CIMBUX over the years is a direct result of this cake-shop-mentality. Sadly, this in-group continues to think small imploring that because they volunteer their time to collect and disburse the peoples monies they should have a free pass. Thinking big means telling the truth! Thinking big means having one President! No organization can function effectively if a past president continues to trespass into the domain of the current chief

executive and engage in unwelcome interference. Again, denying this fact is denying reality. If this is allowed to continue much longer, it will be the deathblow to CIMBUX. This must not be allowed to happen! Buxton needs CIMBUX, but the organisation needs to have a board that is independent of manipulation by one or a select few individuals. On July 20, the membership will convene to elect a new directorate. All eligible voters must make every effort to turn out and elect persons who can be expected to serve in the best interest of our community. They must exhibit altruism, astuteness, competence, diligence, innovation, inspiration, and social flexibility. VOTE FOR CHANGE!

Quintin Bacchus

Celebrate African Heritage & Cultural Pride

Afrikan Cultural Fair

Saturday, August 3, 2013
From 3:00 p.m.

Buxton Community Ground

Enjoy the Tastes of Africa Food, Fashion, Folktales, Drumming, Dance, Music, Games & Fun Special Salute to Elders
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Buxton-Friendship Express
Published by Buxton -Friendship Heritage Fund, Inc.

July 2013
Brooklyn, New York, USA

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Buxton Bush Cook

Saturday, August 24, 2013
from 6:00 p.m. 454 Vermont Street, Brooklyn, NY 11207 (Between Blake & Sutter Aves) Music by Onekos Stereo Choice Jokes, Nancy Stories & More Shine Rice / Calaloo Cook-up with Fried Fish / B-B-Q Chicken Guana, Labba, Duck, Chicken, & Prawns Curry with Roti/Puri Black/White Pudding, Souse, Channa, Phulouri, Vege Dishes Gate Donation: $5 Friendly prices 718-342-0040 (Lorna) 347-881-7055 (John P.) 646-727-5937 (Mboya) 347-863-6121 (Rennie)

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Editor:

Lorna Campbell

E-mail: lorna@buxtonguyana.net

Milestones to Freedom: Resistance, Resolve, Emancipation & Entrepreneurship

Calendar of Heritage Week 2013 Events

Day & Date

Thursday, July 25 Friday, July 26 Saturday, July 27 Sunday, July 28 Monday, July 29 Tuesday, July 30 Wednesday, July 31 Thursday, August 1 Friday, August 2

Time

Event
To be announced

Venue

More Details

6:00 p.m. 9:00 p.m. 8:00 a.m. 9:00 a.m. 8:30 a.m. 10:00 a.m.6:00 p.m.

Documentary Film Show Pre-Emancipation Dance Church Service Sporting Activities Culture Camp High Achievers Tour Art Exhibition Emancipation Fest

Friendship Primary School Tipperary Hall Grace Assemblies of God Buxton Community Ground Buxton Secondary School New Amsterdam Tipperary Hall

Film: Wonders of Africa Ticket Donation: GY$6 / US$5 Friendship Middle Walk Grade 1 Post Grade 6 Students Post Grade 6 Students & Teachers Buxton Landmarks & Legends Activities by First of August Movement

9:00 a.m. 1:00 p.m.

Conference Meetings Pool Picnic Afrikan Cultural Fair Senior Citizens Party Buxton Community Ground

Saturday, August 3