Hugh Desmond Hoyte

Desmond Hoyte with his wife (1997)

Hugh Desmond Hoyte (born March 9, 1929 in Georgetown ; † December 22, 2002 ) was Prime Minister (1984 to 1985) and President (1985 to 1992) of Guyana .

Life

In 1968 he entered parliament as a member of the People's National Congress (PNC) and was called into government shortly thereafter . He was Home Secretary from 1969 to 1970, Minister of Finance from 1970 to 1972, Minister of Labor and Communications from 1972 to 1974, and finally Minister of Economic Development from 1974 to 1980. Hoyte focused on economic affairs during his political career. After the 1980 election, he became one of five vice presidents responsible for economic planning, finance and development and was also a close associate of the PNC President and Leader, Forbes Burnham .

In August 1984 he was named first Vice President and Prime Minister. President Burnham passed away suddenly on August 6, and Hoyte became president at a time when Guyana was struggling with persistent economic and social problems. Shortly before Burnham's death, he and other members of the PNC sought talks with the opposition People's Progressive Party in order to fight the country's problems in national unity. Hoyte spoke out in favor of continuing the dialogue. He scheduled new elections for December 9, 1985. In response to criticism of previous elections, he agreed to certain reforms. Nonetheless, the implementation of the election, which kept the PNC in power with an enlarged majority, was criticized for irregularities, which minimized Hoyte's chances for national reconciliation.

In addition to the office of President, Hoyte also held the office of Foreign Minister from 1990 to 1992. The 1992 elections were won by the People's Progressive Party and their leader Cheddi Jagan was named president. Hoyte remained chairman of the PNC until his death. He was also the PNC's presidential candidate in the 1996 and 2001 elections. He finished second on both occasions (40.6% in 1996 and 41.7% in 2001).

Web links

• Obituary in the New York Times