President Dr Irfaan Ali on Friday issued a passionate call for Guyanese to reject ethnic division and embrace a stronger national identity, declaring that the country’s 60th Independence Anniversary must become a defining moment for unity and healing.
Addressing the opening of Guyana Festival 2026 at the National Stadium in Providence, the president said Guyana could no longer afford to remain trapped by the divisions inherited from colonialism and political tribalism.
“Colonialism did not leave us divided by accident. It left us divided by design,” Ali told a packed audience gathered for the cultural showcase. “Sixty years after independence, we are now called to heal.”
Framing the festival as more than entertainment, the president said the event represented a national effort to transform Guyana’s rich diversity into a source of collective strength under the “One Guyana” vision.
“One Guyana does not erase differences. It transforms the difference,” Ali said. “Unity is not sameness. Unity is respect for differences. Unity is dignity for all.”
The president urged citizens to move beyond what he described as an outdated culture of ethnic comparison, political suspicion and division, warning that those attitudes continue to hold the country back despite the country’s rapid transformation and economic expansion.
“These are echoes of an old order we should have already outgrown,” he said. “Let us be brave enough to say that we will honour our independence by relegating these habits to the dustbin of history.”
Using the festival’s theme, “Song, Soul and Taste,” Ali said Guyana’s culture demonstrates that its people are already deeply connected despite their differences.
He pointed to the country’s music, cuisine and traditions — from chutney and calypso to cassava bread, cook-up rice and pepperpot — as evidence that Guyanese identity has always been shaped by cultural fusion rather than separation.
Ali also cautioned that prosperity alone would not secure national unity, warning that development without inclusion could widen social fractures.
“Prosperity without social cohesion can deepen division if not carefully managed,” he said. “When development is inclusive, unity becomes natural. When development is exclusive, division becomes inevitable.”
The president reserved some of his strongest remarks for Guyana’s younger generation, urging them to reject inherited prejudice and help build a future rooted in love, hope and shared purpose.
“I am not asking you to clear your memory, but to erase the pain and pencil back the future,” Ali declared. “Let One Guyana not be a dream deferred, but a work in progress.”
He later formally declared Guyana Festival 2026 open.
Meanwhile, Tourism Minister Susan Rodrigues described the festival as a symbol of Guyana’s transformation and credited its revival to President Ali’s vision.
Rodrigues noted that the festival was first launched in 2014 during Ali’s tenure as Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce and was designed to showcase Guyana’s culture while strengthening the country’s tourism appeal.
“This is more than a festival. This is a national statement,” Rodrigues said. “A declaration that Guyana is proud of its people, its culture and its identity.”
Also attending the opening ceremony were First Lady Arya Ali, Prime Minister Mark Phillips, Cabinet ministers, members of the diplomatic corps and hundreds of patrons.
The three-day event continues Saturday with a Culture and Food Extravaganza Showcase and concludes Sunday with a National Cookout Competition and the One Guyana Concert featuring local artistes.
