-Calls on all Guyanese to come together for the greater good

His Excellency President Dr Irfaan Ali called on all Guyanese to unite and reject division in his address marking the nation’s 60th Independence Anniversary at Fort Island on the Essequibo River.He urged the younger generation to be at the forefront of the movement: “You are the generation that will finally, fully and irreversibly make Guyana whole”.According to the President, building a unified Guyana is extremely important for the country’s future. He said young people have a clean slate to build tolerance, understanding, trust and cooperation with their fellow Guyanese instead of harbouring division.To the thousands who gathered at Fort Island for the national celebration, the President made a grand call for unity, togetherness and the promotion of One Guyana. He said efforts to divide the nation must not be tolerated, explaining that dwelling on the past has fractured the nationalist movement, weakened the spirit of independence and undermined the covenant of hope in which it was declared.“At this stage of our national journey, no one should seek to divide Guyana in pursuit of power. Instead, we must come together. We must come together and work in harmony. We must work hard, relentlessly, so that we can build and pass on a Guyana that is strong, stable and prosperous,” the President said.Acknowledging past wounds, he called for a time of healing: “The task before us is clear: we must build a nation in which all our people can live a life of fulfilment, a life of honour and a life of dignity. There is no ceiling on what this nation can become. No threat will define our future. There is no boundary, none, on the ambition, the creativity, the enterprise and the dignity of Guyanese people.”He pointed out that the belief that one can only rise if another fails must be eliminated, urging younger generations to reject notions of division and old arguments, and to focus on building a unified Guyana.“The world has too often been told that diversity is a weakness, that difference must lead to division and that multiethnic societies are destined for permanent fracture. Guyana rejects that false premise. We are proving before the eyes of the world that a people drawn from many histories can still build one destiny.”President Ali noted that investments in Guyana’s $1.558 trillion budget are not simply about infrastructure and capital works but are a catalyst for achieving equality for every citizen. He said that the Government’s drive is to ensure that no Guyanese is left behind and that all can benefit from the ongoing development.“One Guyana does not mean we are all the same; it means we are all equal. It means every child in every region has the same rights. Every child and every region have the same right to development, to advancement and to prosper.”Looking to the future, President Ali said unity must be strengthened by institutions that are stable, practical, fair and fit for the realities of the country. He added that a national development platform rooted in unity, democracy, the rule of law and mutual respect must be established as a pillar for Guyana’s future.