Moses Nagamootoo

The Hon. Moses Veerasammy Nagamootoo MP (Tamil: மோசஸ் வீராசாமி நாகமுத்து; born 30 November 1947) is a Guyanese politician, writer and novelist who served as the Prime Minister of Guyana under former President David A. Granger from May 2015 to August 2020.

The Honourable Moses Veerasammy Nagamootoo MP
மோசை வீராசாமி நாகமுத்து  (Tamil)
Prime Minister of Guyana
In office 20 May 2015 – 2 August 2020
President	David A. Granger
Vice President	Carl Barrington Greenidge Khemraj Ramjattan Sydney Allicock
Preceded by	Sam Hinds
Succeeded by	Mark Phillips
Personal details
Born	30 November 1947 Whim, Berbice, British Guiana (present-day East Berbice-Corentyne, Guyana)
Nationality	Guyanese
Political party	Alliance for Change (2011-present)
Other political affiliations	A Partnership for National Unity (2011-present) People's Progressive Party (1964-2011)
Spouse(s)	Sita Nagamootoo

Life and career

Nagamootoo was born in the village of Whim, Berbice, British Guiana, in the present-day region of East Berbice-Corentyne, in present-day Guyana. He is of Tamil Indian descent.[1] Nagamootoo worked as a teacher and journalist, and later became a lawyer.

After high school, he co-founded the De Edwards/Rosignal High School in the late 1960s. There he taught mainly economics and British Constitution with great passion and enthusiasm, which were new subjects to the aspiring students in the West Coast Berbice, Guyana area. One of his students went on to major as a PhD in economics and now teaches that subject at the University of California, Berkeley Extension, California, US.[2]

He was elected to Parliament in 1992 as a People's Progressive Party MP and subsequently served as Minister of Information and Minister of Local Government. He remained in Cabinet under the presidencies of Cheddi Jagan, Samuel Hinds, Janet Jagan and Bharrat Jagdeo. He resigned as Minister in 2000 but remained an MP until 2011, when he resigned from the PPP, having first joined in 1964.[3]

As a leader of the PPP, Nagamootoo received the fifth-highest number of votes (595) in the election to the PPP Central Committee at its 29th Congress on August 2, 2008.[4]

Nagamootoo was rumoured to be a potential PPP candidate for president in 2011; however, he resigned from the party on October 24, 2011, citing the need for "more ideas and a new conversation about Guyana's economic and foreign policy future". He joined the opposition Alliance For Change (AFC) in October 2011 and was re-elected to Parliament.

Following the opposition's victory in the May 2015 general election, Nagamootoo was sworn in as prime minister and first vice-president on 20 May 2015.[5] Nagamootoo briefly took charge of presidential duties on 12 June 2015 while President David A. Granger was visiting the United States.[6]

As a writer

Moses Nagamootoo is the author of the novel Hendree's Cure (2001), which describes a world of Tamil fishermen who inhabited the Corentyne village of Whim in the 1950s and 1960s.[7]

References

1. Sanchayan, Kulasegaram (15 June 2015). "First Tamil Prime Minister". An interview with Moses Nagamootoo. Special Broadcasting Service. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
2. http://guyanainc.biz/featured-business-personnel/prime-minister-moses-nagamootoo-a-true-guyanese-patriot-and-fearless-politician/
3. "Bio" (PDF). guyanaembassy-kuwait.com.
4. Press release on Central Committee election, PPP website, August 3, 2008.
5. "Sixteen ministers sworn in", Stabroek News, 21 May 2015.
6. "PM Nagamootoo performing functions of President", Stabroek News, 12 June 2015.
7. "Hendree's Cure". Good Reads. Retrieved 30 September 2020.

External links

• (Paywalled) Article on one of Nagamootoo's novels in Callaloo.
• Article on Nagamootoo in Stabroek News
• Article on Nagamootoo in Stabroek News
• Author information at Peepal Tree Press