Former public security minister and ex-member of the PPP’s Central Executive Committee (CEC), Khemraj Ramjattan, has opened up about the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) administration’s disturbing attempts to suppress reports on extrajudicial killings during the height of the 2002-2006 crime wave. Ramjattan’s stark revelations are not just an indictment of the PPP but also of former President Bharrat Jagdeo’s government, which was accused of turning a blind eye to the massacre of innocent civilians and the questionable actions of rogue law enforcement officials.
In a recent Countdown podcast, Ramjattan recounted how George Bacchus of Princess Street, Lodge, Georgetown—one of the most notable whistleblowers during the dark days of extrajudicial killings—had sought him out for help. Bacchus, who was gunned down in his bed on June 24, 2004, allegedly told Ramjattan that individuals were instructing him to kill people in the cemetery [Le Repentir Cemetery, Georgetown]. Bacchus’ confession was chilling, and it was clear that he had information that could shed light on the brutal crimes taking place under the PPP’s watch.
Instead of being met with the appropriate response from his own party, however, Ramjattan was essentially told to keep quiet. When he took Bacchus’ claims to the PPP leadership, he recalled being completely ignored. Ramjatttan, his voice laced with frustration, said when he went to the PPP leadership, where he was CEC member and brought the information to them, they refused to listen.”
Going further, he said, he enlisted the help of then-PPP member Moses Nagamootoo, who raised the matter within the party’s Central Committee. Yet, even then, the response was a resounding silence. He was told to “shut up,” Ramjattan revealed, adding that there was little political will to address the growing allegations of death squads and summary executions taking place under the government’s nose.
Ramjattan’s accounts are not just hearsay. The period from 2002 to 2006, during which this wave of killings took place, was marked by a staggering loss of life. This was the time when the notorious drug lord and U.S. fugitive, Roger Khan, was believed to have played a major role orchestrating much of the violence. It was also during this time that the now-infamous Home Affairs Minister Ronald Gajraj was at the helm, and uttered remarks about the government’s role with the phantom squads killings that only added fuel to the fire. He was quoted as saying that if given the chance, he would do it all over again—a chilling admission that underscores the government’s complicity in the bloodshed.
During this period, people were terrified to walk the streets of Georgetown and other parts of the country. Police officers, innocent university students, and civilians alike were gunned down in broad daylight. Bullet-ridden bodies were found scattered across the capital, and yet there was no credible investigation into the murders. Ramjattan’s recollection is damning. There was no official inquiry into the killings as required by the Coroner’s Act, Cap 4:03.
Public safety was in shambles, and the law enforcement system had either been compromised or simply stood by, unable or unwilling to act.
Even more disturbing is the fact that, despite public outcry, a Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the killings failed to hold the government accountable. But the absence of a formal investigation into these deaths, despite the overwhelming evidence, casts a long shadow over Jagdeo’s presidency and his government’s priorities during that time.
For Jagdeo, the reality of these allegations has always been inconvenient. The PPP, under his leadership, has sought to deflect blame for the violence, often by scapegoating the opposition or framing those who raise questions about the party’s conduct as political enemies. Ramjattan suggested that this tendency to shift blame is a reflection of the PPP’s deep-rooted guilt complex. They want to shake off the guilt, and so they throw nastiness at others like the [Alliance for Change] AFC, A Partnership for National Unity [APNU], and People’s National Congress [PNC] to deflect from their own role in this darkness,” Ramjattan stated.
The grim reality, however, is that there has been no closure for the families of the victims, and the PPP’s guilt is far from erased. Even with new political developments and the rise of the oil economy, the skeletons of the past continue to haunt the PPP. The chilling memory of extrajudicial killings, the silence of those in power at the time, and the lack of justice remain one of the darkest chapters in Guyana’s çağdaş political history.
As the 2025 General and Regional Elections approach, with Jagdeo still firmly entrenched in the ruling party, the ghosts of the past remain. The failure of the PPP to confront its ugly history, and the tragic deaths of innocent civilians, will likely be a point of contention in the upcoming elections. Ramjattan’s revelations serve as an important reminder of this brutal legacy of the PPP, and the public’s demand for accountability remains as strong as ever.