British Guiana’s Governor, Sir Richard Luyt, emphasised the importance of stabilising peace and fostering economic growth in his country. Speaking at Palisadoes Airport, Sir Richard addressed key issues, including proportional representation’s role in fair governance and the election results, which he described as reflective of the people’s will. 

Published Monday, January 11, 1965

Luyt on official visit here

The Governor of British Guiana, His Excellency Sir Richard Luyt, arrived in Jamaica yesterday afternoon for a short official visit before proceeding to London for talks with the British Colonial Secretary on the future of Britain’s South American colony.

Sir Richard arrived at Palisadoes Airport shortly before 5 o’clock and was met by L.A. Deans Walcott, acting ADC to the Governor-General; Hector Wynter, secretary of the Jamaica Rhodes Scholarship Selection Committee; Dr E.D. Ellington, secretary of the Selection Committee for BWI Rhodes Scholars and Chairman of the Rhodes Scholar Association in Jamaica; and Bryan Rose, secretary to the UK High Commissioner, J.R. Middleton, among others.

Sir Richard will be staying at King’s House as a guest of the governor-general and Lady Campbell.

While in Jamaica, Sir Richard will preside over a meeting of the British Caribbean Rhodes Scholarship Selection Committee, of which he, himself a Rhodes Scholar, is chairman. The committee is responsible for selecting Rhodes Scholars from the rest of the West Indies, excluding Jamaica. The meeting is being held in Jamaica because most of the applicants, who must be interviewed, are undergraduates at The University of the West Indies, Mona.

In an interview at the airport, the governor of British Guiana expressed interest in Jamaica’s concern for developments in British Guiana.

When questioned about Dr Cheddi Jagan’s boycott of the opening session of British Guiana’s new Parliament, the governor said that whether the boycott continued was a decision for the PPP to make.

Regarding British Guiana’s general situation, Sir Richard stated, “We now have peace in British Guiana. We want that peace to be stabilised. We want a general collective effort by everybody to go forward economically.”

Sir Richard also commented on the recent election results, saying they accurately reflected the will of the British Guianese people. He noted that the majority of the population was now represented by the majority of members in the new parliament. This outcome, he explained, was made possible by proportional representation, which allowed for a fairer distribution of seats. Without it, he pointed out, 55% of the population would have voted for the Opposition but secured only 15 of the 35 seats in the Legislative Assembly.

When asked to compare this system with Britain’s Labour Government, which had polled fewer votes percentage-wise than the PPP in British Guiana yet still formed the UK Government, Sir Richard remained non-committal. He remarked, “In the UK, there is also a possibility of change. In British Guiana, there was not.”

During his visit, Sir Richard has several official engagements in Jamaica, in addition to presiding over the Rhodes Scholarship Committee meeting. He is scheduled to leave on Wednesday.

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