Prez Ali celebrates Christmas with people of Guyana

Guyana: The Office of the President of the Republic of Guyana shared an update on the Christmas celebrations across the nation. To mark Christmas Eve, President Ali and his wife, as well as the first lady of the nation Arya Ali, hosted “State House Christmas Cheer 2022”.

Live performances from singers, dancers and musicians made the event more engaging. As per the update by the President’s Office, the event was joined by the people of Guyana through virtual means as well as through radios and televisions.

The families were greeted by the Head of State, and he joined the families in the avenue and also prepared hot treats for them. During this meet and greet, President Irfaan Ali was accompanied by Brigadier (Retd.) Mark Phillips; his wife, Mrs Mignon Bowen-Phillips; members of the diplomatic corps, members of the cabinet, along with senior members of the Guyana Police Force.

On Christmas Day, President Ali visited the families of Region Six and offered new homes to two families. While handing over the keys to the houses to the families, President Ali stated that this move was an exemplification of corporate social responsibility.

As per the update by the Government of Guyana, the houses were given to the family of Rominia Benedict and the family of Wendy Williams.

The houses were constructed under the Men on Mission (MoM) initiative started by President. The initiative was made possible because of the equal partnership between the Government of Guyana and the private sector. The efforts were lauded by President Ali during the handing-over ceremony.

The Government informed that during this visit, President Ali was joined by the Senior Minister within the President’s Office with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh; the Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustapha; the Housing and Water Minister, Collin Croal, along with regional representatives and private sector representatives who made this project possible.

Along with this, President Irfaan Ali spread Christmas cheer to residents of the Dharm Shala in Albouystown. This is the third consecutive Christmas that President Ali has interacted with the elderly residents of the home.

During his brief remarks, he assured that his Government is working aggressively to ensure that more is done for the elderly, including through a support system.

He announced that from January 2023, the water charges for the institution would be waived, and a number of residents would benefit from the Government’s temporary employment programmes as “additional help to support the work we are doing”.

The President also made a sizeable donation of $2m to the institution while praising the efforts of the private sector for continuously embracing its corporate social responsibility in support of the charitable institution. He also applauded the “tremendous work of love, commitment and selflessness” of the Ramsaroop family, who have been the custodians of the Dharm Shala for the past 102 years.

The Head of State assisted in serving lunch to the residents while Guyanese musician Ras Camo entertained those gathered with songs reflecting the merriment of the season.

Also attending the activity was the CEO of the board, Edward Boyer, Clarissa Rheil, as well as the Ramsaroop sisters: Kella and Pamela.

Following the event, President Ali shared toys with children from the community.