Dear Editor,
GHK Lall has issued a call for Guyanese to put a hold on aggravated partisanship and for us to think nationally, rather than be pushed solely by parochialism. Despite the rather abstruse style of Mr. Lall, his message is worthy of careful consideration.
Before I engage the central points of Lall’s article I should ask the gentleman to note that Guyana does not exist in a vacuum. By this I mean that while we must indeed look at the problems of Guyana in a Guyanese context, the impulse to compare cannot be simply wished away. After all, at least 50% of the active critics of the Government of Guyana who write in the press are living overseas.
In fact, Lall himself engages in juxtaposing developments in Guyana with those of other countries. Here he is – “Of course, it is conveniently ignored that some of the other societies can “afford” the ill effects of some corruption and failures; that there are safety nets in place; that the official poverty measurements represent a manageable livable standard for our fleeting countrymen; that justice is served most of the time; that the playing field, while not always level, admits others; and that even at its most deplorable, those societies are repositories of hope, inspire confidence, and which their citizens will not exchange for anywhere else” (SN Oct. 23).
This is quite a lot. But I must say to Mr. Lall that it is all too convenient to dismiss comparisons with those other green pastures, when all the time Guyanese are led to believe that those other places are beds of roses. Lall has to make up his mind. If you want to compare Guyana to the glitter of other societies, you must also be made aware of their problems. Is it a small matter that 40% of African American and Latino children in the U.S. live in poverty; is it a trifling matter that after 400 years of history African American males make 64% of what white workers make; is it a trivial matter that 50 million Americans do not have health care; is it a trifling matter that Guyana has actually experienced more rapid upward social mobility compared to many southern states in the U.S. or compared to Appalachia? Is it a small matter that Baltimore with a population of 600,000 has 300 homicides every year? It is of no importance that only 1 in 5 students in Washington D.C. graduates from high school? Is it irrelevant that students have to pass through metal detectors in many school districts? Is it irrelevant that hired hands are used to scrub hundreds of thousands of minority voters from the voters list?
Guyanese must be well aware that many middle class Guyanese live a much better life compared to even the middle class in those societies that they constantly praise. This is the reason why the real Guyanese middle class, generally speaking, do not leave Guyana.
Having said all of that, Lall is still making a valid point about thinking nationally.
I have myself called for a more open and balanced conversation in the press. We all need to keep in mind that governments all over the world defend their record, and opposition parties and other opposition elements spend all their time attacking that record. Even a Nobel Prize for President Obama is attacked.
I will state this as clearly as possible – Guyana has a far way to go. It is not a bed of roses.
I will also insist here that if Lall and other commentators cannot see positive developments in Guyana then I cannot envisage how we will get out of this quagmire of aggravated partisanship. The time for bipartisanship is now.
Yours faithfully,
Dr Randy Persaud
“Guyana has a far way to go”I don’t think so,i am seeing danger and destruction ahead.
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry at this man and his silly letters. Since I’m not in the mood right now, I’ll just give him a few points…
Education – Guyanese come to America and get a free high school education. If they’re not making enough money, they can get food stamps, free healthcare for the kids, and college aid. If the kids are pushed and they succeed, they can get a scholarship and go to college for almost no money on their part.
Economy – Every man who’s willing to work and live within his/her means can make it in America. Of course, it will take hard work and sacrifice, but it can work. In some cases, a lot of hard work. Some Guyanese come here, are able to work, go back to school and still send a little money back home. How many middle class people in Guyana have extra money to send to relatives living in another country?
Healthcare – in NY, children get healthcare for free.
School dropout rate – it is no secret that a lot of AMERICAN kids drop out of high school, but how many Guyanese kids in America drop out? As far as I know, a lot of Guyanese graduate and move on to brighter futures. How many children graduating high school in Guyana can look for a brighter future? How many of them who don’t have contacts in high places can get their foot in the door when it comes time to find a job?
Security – in some neighbourhoods, Guyanese in America can stand outside at all hours of the night and be safe. If a call to 911 is made, there is always someone on the other end and a police response can be expected in about 3-4 minutes. What’s the police response time in Guyana?
Crime in school – in the old days, schools in Guyana were safe. They were safe because Guyanese children were raised with morals and values, but now, as Guyana is seeing the decay of those values you can expect to see metal detectors soon…or not at all. We’ve already seen cases of teachers getting beaten and threatened in Guyana’s schools.
Many Guyanese in America dream of the lifestyle which Guyana offered years ago. The Guyana many of us grew up in. There was crime and there was corruption, but not to the extent we’re seeing with this current administration. This current administration is making Burnham look like an altar boy. Murderous killers walking into homes and murdering men, women, and babies in their sleep. Police tipping off criminals and providing them with police/army gear. Ministers preaching about the rights of children and the need to protect our precious children from bad men, but when a case involves someone in the government, that same minister turns the other way and pretends not to see. A president who takes away a simple car from his wife/ex-wife – a car which she uses to HELP GUYANA’S CHILDREN. Guyanese running away in great numbers yet nothing is done to provide more jobs and security. A president who spends more time in other countries than he does in Guyana. Randy, I hope you’re getting paid good money because with the job you’re doing (or trying to do), you deserve it.
Jim Bob, add the diverse immigrant culture of the USA and compare to the immigrant culture of Guyana! One thing more I must add here. I sure wish I HAVE THE POWER TO GRANT VISAS TO THE TOUTED GUYANESE MIDDLE CLASS WHO WOULD PREFER TO STAY IN GUYANA THEN RANDY WILL WONDER WHERE GUYANESE MIDDLE CLASS DISAPPEARED TO!!
Yes, Jim-Bob, Guyanese come to the US and get everything free. Why don’t you tell us who pays for all the free stuff that the GuyAmericans receive. Santa Clause? I know he does not. The American tax payers shoulder the cost burden for all the free stuff. Having to give up over 60% of one’s incomes for all these free services is what is galling to the average American, especially the Republicans.
When you look at the amount of effort put in by the Guyanese public workers and what they are paid for it, they are overpaid and do live well when compared to someone with their skills in the US. People have opportunities to make a living in Guyana but spent their days expecting and waiting for the Government to provide for them. There are many people from other countries who live and work in Guyana. Yet many of those who were born there sit on their duffs and wait for the government to give them a job.
It is rather silly to talk about the free stuff offered by the US without some providing some information as to how they are paid for. It may also be useful for you to provide some comparative metrics on work effort, productivity, operational efficiency, and compensation for Guyanese and American workers.
Everybody wants to live here and enjoy all the free stuff. But no one wants to defend and build where he or she lives. The same people who would only work an hour a day for five days per week in Guyana come to the US and kill themselves 16 hours per day for seven days per week. I often wonder how much better off Guyanese and Guyana would be if everyone puts 7 hours of work per day for five days per week for 50 weeks per year.
This is not defending the Government in Guyana. It is about Guyanese building their country and taking control of their lives and destiny if they have to live in Guyana.
Sarkar,
I have a suggestion. Why don’t you extend your wish TO GRANT US VISAS TO ALL THE PEOPLE IN EVERY COUNTRY OF THE WORLD? What do you think will happen? Do you think people from all the other countries will run to the US? Naaa, you do not think so. You are confident only the people from Guyana will rush to the US.
Why don’t’ you find something useful to say, suggest, or recommend? Geeeeees!
The US, Canada, UK, Barbados, Suriname, etc are by no means bed of roses, but Guyanese are known to be hard working people, and if Guyanese can make it in these countries starting from scratch, then why are so many Guyanese unable to make a decent living right in our own country? In the country many of us grew up in. Why are so many Guyanese fleeing to go WORK on the tiny island of Barbados?
Looks like I need to spell for you Keith Sampson for you missed the boat!!
Oh lawd! Keith on de war path!
Keith, all that “free” stuff I mentioned, do you know who pays for it? I do. My neighbour does. That’s what you get when a properly run taxation system is actually taken seriously. How is it possible that the government of the US, and even Barbados, can provide these “free” stuff for their people but yet the government of Guyana cannot? You wanna know why? Well, actually, you’re a pretty smart guy, so I’ll let you figure out where all the tax money is going. Or, where does all the “free” money the government of Guyana receives from the world bank and the imf go?
Quote: “The same people who would only work an hour a day for five days per week in Guyana come to the US and kill themselves 16 hours per day for seven days per week. I often wonder how much better off Guyanese and Guyana would be if everyone puts 7 hours of work per day for five days per week for 50 weeks per year.”
Exactly, I have been saying that for MONTHS! Keith, thanks for proving a point I (and many others) have been trying to show randy and the rest of his friends. Guyanese come to the US, Canada, and the UK and break their backs to work in the hot sun and in the freezing cold, when we would rather be at home enjoying the ocean breeze on our faces and the caribbean sunshine on our foreheads. But, who in their right mind would leave this place or Barbados for that matter and return to Guyana which is plagued by cold blooded killers who are shown no opposition. Corrupt politicians who have no problems with favouritism. With the constant blackouts, which I’m sure Mr. Hack can inform you about.
I am one person who absolutely hate all the free stuff which is given to some folks who don’t even work or try to find a job. I hate the facts that some, actually many, people take advantage of the system. My hard earned money goes into many of those programs, but I also love the fact that if I call 911, I can get assistance right away. Or, the fact that if I file a complaint against someone, action will be taken whether that person is a family member of a politician or not. I like the fact that if a pedophile preys on a family member of mine, action will be taken.
Mr. Keith, thank you for proving my point.
Guyanese left and continue to leave Guyana because it is a lot easier to run to a country where everything is built by someone else and available for our use. Instant prosperity beats doing the back braking working of building everything from scratch for the benefit of future generations. I did, you did, and thousands of others did. Cut the crap, the governments of Guyana did not throw us out. We left voluntarily and for our economic benefit. Burnham, Hoyt, Cheddi, and Jagdeo did not throw us out. We left for personal and selfish reasons. The foreign based Guyanese who cannot make it big in their new country pretend today that they care about Guyana when they cut and ran when things got rough in Guyana. Now they think that they can return and make a killing. The rest of Guyana will leave if they can find a way to enjoy the things built in another country and not have to shed their blood. I am not sure they would be willing to run to the US if the US requires them to spend the first year of their US residence fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan for the US.
Sampson, Jim-Bob is on the right track. OF COURSE, you have to pay. NOTHING IS FREE! BUT one actually GETS something for the payment. Not like in Guyana, where most people pay and then the electricity supply in inconstant, the water is terrible, the police force ignores phone calls (many are criminals themselves)and all manner of indignities are heaped on Guyanese. Guyanese are overpaid??? Man, yuh seeing stars.
Having to give up over 60% of one’s incomes for all these free services is what is galling to the average American, especially the Republicans.
You need a better tax advisor, 60 percent?
hahhahahhaha man you mussy prappa chuppiddy fuh pay uncle sam dem kinda bread dat!
Sarkar,
Sarkar,
I never had the benefit of a formal education so please spell away. I need the extra help. I am waiting and so is all of Guyana. We want to hear from the genius, one of the “cut and run” crowd who now thinks he knows what is best for Guyana. I will be sure to recommend you for the spelling bee championship if you do well. Spell it out for us morons. We can’t wait to hear your wisdom. Who god bless no man can curse. You are truly blessed oh smart one.
Desi,
“When you look at the amount of effort put in by the Guyanese public workers and what they are paid for it, they are overpaid and do live well when compared to someone with their skills in the US.”
Not seeing stars my countryman! Just seeing a bunch of lazy people who take the Guyanese public for a ride everyday. It starts at the Airport, goes through the entire country, and ends at the airport.
I wonder what the electricity situation would have been like if all the people who use electricity paid for that electricity. The picture from 3000 miles away is always different for the picture 1 mile away. Let’s encourage all Guyanese to pay for the electricity they use and force the electricity company to provide reliable electricity.
Jim-Bob,
Why don’t we let the reading public decide on whose point I proved? I am not a PPP supporter but I am a Guyanese. I never voted in Guyana but all my ancestors were PNC supporters. I know where they took the country and I will support every effort to get my country out of the hole. Let’s hold the PPP accountable. We do not need to tear down the country to do that.
Keith S. I won’t bother. You wouldn’t understand anyway, your bitterness has blinded you!!
Sarkar,
Your anger against the PPP has clouded your intellect and made you lose your capacity to see the truth. Your responses are the typical malarkey that flow from the axe grinders, especially those who mouth off from their perches in foreign lands. The situation in Guyana is not black or white. It is one of the many shades of grey that spans the extremes. Target your venom on your real enemies but do not tear down entire government. There are still some good people there trying to build something out of the mess.
Keith:
Quote: “There are still some good people there trying to build something out of the mess.”
Like who? Give some examples. Thanks.
Jim cry….yu know why it is these same people who acustom to the house canna sit down and talk, have the lang frak with slipper cook duck curry fu them and friends eat, and drink the rum and look around and say thing nice…..third world thinking.
What a Dr. and Guyanese would follow him around…..brown drinking water is troubling, GPL fairy lights service and you can get kill if you walking on the side of the street be it dark or be it lit.
Some people would not change, and thats why a certain section of the Guyanese society remain the same. No change.
As usual, another one with his head in the sand. YOU have a sweet life in Guyana, banna, YOU and your people on your bed of roses.
“Guyana has a far way to go. It is not a bed of roses.” @#$%^&*()_+||! Just finished copying & pasting that phrase then BLACKOUT IN BERBICE! Working on batteries, got to shut down now to save it. 7:52 AM. Blackouts affects all classes, not just middle classes.
11:12 AM. Current back on. Yaaaaah! Clap, clap, clap, clap. Now what was I going to really say? Lordie, forgot. This blackout culture also kills thoughts.
Dr Randy….careful how you throwing around percentages….first off…USA and Guyana operate under different systems…you should know that the 50 million you state that don’t have healthcare is a lie….everybody in America has healthcare…..some just don’t pay for or enrol in a plan….they use the Emergency Rooms for free….the poverty line for a family of four is about $2000US @ month($400000.00GUY)…how many Guyanese make that??….don’t know how you come to the 64% difference in pay…..as to the killings…..we got plenty guns here and the jails full to the seams…..the school dropout is troubling..Pres Obama working on that…but at least most kids got to go and there are schools for them….and the metal detectors…..we got them all over the place now…..you never pass through one at the airport???….so why not at the schools…..lastly…. there is no middle class here anymore.
Blackrattlesnake,
Here is some information to ponder and perhaps you may want to update your comments to reflect the facts. Google is a great tool. Now we simply cannot say what comes to mind and try to pass on opinions as facts just to make a point.
The 2009 Poverty Guidelines for the 48 Contiguous States and the District of Columbia
Persons in family Poverty guideline
1 $10,830
2 14,570
3 18,310
4 22,050
5 25,790
6 29,530
7 33,270
8 37,010
For families with more than 8 persons, add $3,740 for each additional person.
Keith Sampson……seems like you can’t understand….but can sure write….or you can’t do Mathematics……my statement reads…. ‘about $2000US @month= $24000@year aproximation’……read your own post……family of 4: $22050US…….or $1837.50 exact……in dealing with ’rounding numbers’ in math……you can Google to find out your answer.
RattleSnake: “the poverty line for a family of four is about $2000US @ month($400000.00GUY)…”
I believe that is about 24,000 USD per year. The US government states that a family makes about 22,000 USD per year. You are by approximately OFF BY 2,000 per year. Get the facts and present the facts. Stop the fudging to make your point.
Sorry Keith Sampson……i see you don’t know statistics……let me ask…..what’s the population of Guyana????? give exact number please…..
In closing…..Keith Sampson…..two States in the USA have poverty levels of over $2000@month…….can you name them??????
we must indeed look at the problems of Guyana in a Guyanese context, the impulse to compare cannot be simply wished away. After all, at least 50% of the active critics of the Government of Guyana who write in the press are living overseas.
Ahh Randy I am guyanese and I am looking at it from a Guyanese context whether I am on the moon or in GY at the time I am writing the critique is irrelevant.
Have you ever stopped to think why people criticizing the govt are only from outside the country and not under the thumb of the oppressive and petty PPP?
hhehehehhehee nice try you should get into being a magician your tricks using slight of hand is very apparent!
Permit me to tag here, As Dr. Persaud likes %ages, I have one request for him. Provide a comparison of your salary WRT the salary of someone of equal education… let’s say at UG and I must add of waaaay more value to Guyana than you (Prem does not count …..).
Randy is now writing complaining about putting things in context. Mek up your mind you PPP apologist.
Weren’t you the chap on here several weeks ago talking about Don Valley Pkwy style lights and the bridge which doesn’t exist anywhere in canada or the rest of the world apparently? Who was doing the comparing then? and from what context?
The propaganda artistes cannot handle the criticism they receive from Non Resident Guyanese and it irks them so they yet again try to discredit non resident Guyanese by claiming we dont live there so we dont know what is going on and we are putting things out of context.
Is embracing the Burnham constitution by Jagdoe out of context?
Is the Raja khan association with the govt and subsequent criminalization of the govt out of context?
Is the blackouts and water shortage out of context?
Is the corruption left right and center out of context?
If this is what you are saying then Jagdoe is also not connected to the plight of the Guyanese people because he is never there. HE was just in Canada after returning from turkey a few weeks ago. The man is out of the country 65% of the time. He is never there Randy boy so what you have to say about that?
We all know what he has to say, his president does not “LOOSE SLEEP” over anything that concerns Guyana.he speaks of the middle class, I dare them to walk on the roads at all time of the night, especially how the bishop got mugged.
Mr Lall correctly compares Guyana to other countries. Many analysts do that including economists and those in development agencies. I am certain Randy Persaud read Guyana’s HDI ranking for 2009 relative to its CARICOM peers. The HDI is one example of such a cross-country comparison – its technical problems notwithstanding. Now you’ve got to cut all this puff and start adding stuff to your writing. Leave the puff for the members of your boss’ anti-blog unit. Quantify for us this Guyanese middle-class you wrote about. What’s the percentage of this middle class relative to the Guyana population? In which sector do they work? Are they involved in legitimate businesses? What’s the ethnic composition of this middle class? How does Guyana compare with others in terms of a popular inequality measure (Gini, etc)? Does this middle-class use Guyana’s health and public school system? Do they prefer that their children born in America (yes that same country you claim is bad for Blacks and Hispanics)? How remittances and smuggling have contributed to your hypothesized middle-class formation? Is this middle-class getting most of government contracts? Is there a geographical concentration of this middle-class? What are the political and voting preferences of this middle-class?
TK, he shouldn’t just quantify the Guyanese middle-class, but define them in the context of where they work and what they earn that really qualify them as middle-class. Example, do they work with the government at ministries, departments, agencies or instituions? Or do they work with themselves or with the private sector? Do all pay taxes on thweir earnings? Can they account legally for how they came by their material and financial wealth?
See, a man like Randy can afford to give up his teaching job and return to work for Jagdeo as a media spinner earning what most Guyanese at home can only dream of earning, but even as he touts Guyana’s middle class as comparable to that in other developed countries, I don’t see overseas-based middle class Guyanese trading places in huge numbers. I wonder why!
I would like to see those middle-classes com over here I will give them free food and lodging. JUST WANT TO SEE THEM B-A-L-L
enjoying themselves the way they do on our FUNDINGS/FOREIGN-BASED TAXPAYING MONEY.
Every country has its problems but it is rather stupid to compare Guyana to the USA. These are two vastly different countries in different world categories and Guyana will always be found lacking. Guyana has to be dealt with on its own merits or compared to another country/island in the same category. This is plain FOOLISH!!!!
All those same middle class people that Randy Persaud is talking about has their American and Canadian Visas/Greeen cards etc.
They are not taking chances, one foot in Guyana and one overseas.
These include Ministers of the Govt.
This guy should use the Chronicle newspaper to spread his propagnada since the Govt. claims Chronicle gets a wide circulation based on their advertisement quota from the Govt.
Yes Mr. Persaud ! I learned a long time ago that the poor in the US owns a car which he bought for circa $ 1000.00 and possesses a washing and drying machines etc – a product of the level of development of the society.
Ever wonder why I refer to the likes of Mr. Persaud as PHd. – observe the small ‘d’. Ha!
Correction sir both feet out of Guyana only their little fingers are in GY and a pair of old shoes.
Georgie, I will wager that Randy Persaud and Prem Misir are US citizens who have returned to work with Jagdeo. And you know what that means?
In fact, there is even a cabinet minister whose wife travels to the US in her third trimester of pregnancy to deliver babies born in America. Ever wonder why?
Same said minister is living in state housing at a cost to the Guyanese tax payer of 3000 USD per month. (Hermandston Annexe)
yes man is true dat!
What percentage of the population of Guyana is Middle Class??? Isn’t it the few that benefits from the Cronyism and Nepotism of the current government and its ministers??? What about the chasm that separates the rich from the poor?