Dear Editor,
I am not one to rush to the defence of minibus drivers, as we all know many of them could be quite rude and inconsiderate at times. There are also those who are the complete opposite.
However, I am totally surprised with the Stabroek News’ decision to publish a letter from an ‘unknown’ person who complained bitterly about a trip to Linden in a minibus and allowing the publication of the licence plate number of that minibus without giving the driver of that bus a chance to respond to the claims. The letter writer may be quite accurate with his/her account of what took place, but the letter writer could also be mischievous if he/she was not satisfied with the service for one reason or the other.
The Stabroek News, being one of the leading newspapers, could have easily taken a bus to the Linden bus park and get the driver’s side of the story. Had the registration number not have been published, I could have cared less, but we have to be careful of the monsters we are feeding. Just for argument’s sake, let’s say a man and his girlfriend have a problem, he drives a fancy car. She no longer enjoys the ride in it, a new woman is in place.
In her fury, she writes a letter to the press complaining that PLL 0000 jumped the traffic light and almost killed her as she crossed the road. Should you publish that letter without checking with the driver of the car? I think not. I am not trying to play editor for the Stabroek News, but I have seen instances where people travel all the way from Linden, and when it’s time to pay, they walk away paying nothing or paying half of the fare.
I have seen drivers complain and I have seen passengers issue threats. I have seen passengers complain and drivers issuing threats.
I do not know the minibus or the driver referred to in the letter, and frankly I could care less about the two. But as the guardians of truth, it is the role of the media to always go after that truth and be fair and balanced.
Again, my problem is not against the complaint or the facts in the letter, but if the Stabroek News could hide the identity of the letter writer then it should have also hidden the identity of the minibus since you failed to get the driver’s side. All in the name of being fair and balanced. Stabroek News could have published the letter without identifying the bus; instead that information could have been forwarded to the traffic department for investigation.
That’s just my take. Folks, I have lost many friends to careless driving. Just be careful on the roadways. Please.
Yours faithfully,
Gordon Moseley
