Dear Editor,
I refer to Mayor Hamilton Green’s letter captioned ‘Are we serious about having Guyanese return to serve?’ that appeared in the Stabroek News on  August 15.

In summary, Mr Green argued that his daughter (a President’s College and US university graduate) decided to leave her job at Guysuco because she had to work under someone with only a secondary education. I wish to remind Mr Green that he occupied the high-ranking position of Prime Minister and currently he is the Mayor, and he himself only has a secondary education and did not have a stellar scholastic career. Maybe it is fine for others with superior qualifications to work under him, but that is not good enough for his daughter.

I also wish to point out to Mr Green and many of the online bloggers who commented on Mr Green’s letter, that having a university qualification and having experience in the job environment are two entirely different things. The recent batch of graduates who returned from Cuba must also realise this. I will use this opportunity to urge them to use their qualifications and apply themselves totally to their jobs and make sure they earn their money. If they impress and work hard their labours will not go unoticed. There are many opportunities to secure international funding to do an MSc or PhD but they will need to have at least 5 years’ experience after their first degree.

While I agree that in many cases one needs to have a contact to get a job in Guyana, it is the same worldwide, especially here in the UK. However, this is not so in the private sector, where you need to be productive and prove yourself. There will come a time when things will change with acquiring a public sector job.

Finally, Mr Green mentioned that maybe it was his daughter’s name that was the impediment. I think he really meant that she should have received preferential treatment due to her name. As one blogger put it, maybe Mr Green’s daughter is paying for his sins.
Yours faithfully,
Raymond Persaud