Dear Editor,
One continues to wonder about how autocratic this “Democracy” can be. For some inexplicable reason it refuses to recognise that citizens, more specifically Guyana’s teachers and Public Servants are entitled to legal representation as provided for in the Guyana Constitution. That these agencies are being pellucidly bypassed must be a matter of substantive concern to this Administration’s partners in CARICOM, where Guyanese of varying professions, including law, reside. But then the latter must also reflect on the eloquent indifference of Guyana’s Legal Agencies’ loquacious silence on such a substantive constitutional issue.
The most recent interaction that leaves all to ponder is that the Guyana Teachers’ Union is bypassed in order to speak only to individual teachers, regardless of status and pay that they will benefit from ‘housing loans’ of up to $15 M at an interest rate of up to 3.75 per cent. The offer must involve some reflections on whether there is already a loan at home, what length, amount/rate, what would be affordable at my month’s salary, how many years have I left to retire, how many children could I/we afford to maintain (and at different schools), how many guarantors would I be allowed, would the Ministry certify my eligibility for a loan with any bank, how do I cope with a current car loan, and when will I be compensated for short pay of my salary?
The above are just questions from a student teacher, who reflected on how underpaid principals will qualify, and if Union officials will be given support as needed. At what stage is there connectivity in ‘One Nation’?
Sincerely,
E.B. John
