Dear Editor, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo submitted his list of six nominees to President Granger for selection of one to be appointed as Chairman of the Guyana Election Commission (GECOM). The President should move with haste in making the appointment, since all of the nominees are fully qualified and ‘fit and proper’ to head GECOM. The business of the elections body has been left at a standstill since last February. That is more than six months, with a lot of work remaining in planning and organising for the next local…
Read MoreCategory: Letters
Guyana’s sugar industry can be saved
One thing’s for certain: media coverage of the sugar issue is not where it ought to be at this time, and many of the experts I have spoken to have advised me it has much to do with sugar being seen as a rural issue when the media houses are all based in Georgetown. I am humbly calling on the media houses to spend some more time reporting on the sugar issues in the villages of Demerara and Berbice. But that issue aside, one of the greatest betrayals of our…
Read MoreWomen have fought for the right to work and should not be prevented from doing so
Dear Editor, I do not think that the proposal being advanced by the Social Protection Ministry, through its minister responsible for labour, is possible at this juncture. The fact is that too many women need to work to supplement their families, as they are the sole bread-winners of their households. It is the opinion of this writer that Keith Scott has moved with emotion, love and respect for our women. It is known that at times emotionality can affect our judgement, but at the same time, it can lead to…
Read MoreCongratulations to West Indies
Congratulations to the West Indies cricket team for a magnificent win over England at Edgbaston. According to some renowned cricket analysts when all the circumstances were taken into considerations the success can be classified as the greatest-ever comeback victory. As we jubiliate, we must remember that all was not well with the performance of our team. In England’s second innings, we dropped seven catches; We allowed their tail to wag like a ferocious English bulldog on the loose, while over the years our tail appears to start from deep in…
Read MoreEnough of this charade from Minister Bulkan
Dear Editor, In any society, following the rule of law is always the optimal course of action to take. However, this concept seems alien to Communities Minister Ronald Bulkan, when it comes to the establishment of the Local Government Commission. Article 78A of our Constitution makes provision for the coming into being of such a Commission, something the Minister in 2017 appears very resistant to. If you observe his public utterance in 2012, it is clear as day and night that he was singing a different tune then. In 2012,…
Read MoreDelay in hearing elections petition could undermine Guyana’s democracy
Dear Editor, I have noted the decision of the Kenyan High Court in relation to the recently held presidential elections in that country. The Court pronounced the elections null and void. The Court came to that decision because of the many irregularities that were found. The Parties would go to the poll in two months’ time. This is a historic decision and it spells well for democracy, not only in Kenya, but in Africa and the world. It is apposite to note that the reasons for pronouncing the elections null…
Read MoreGuyana should learn from experiences of Texas and Louisiana and adequately prepare for flooding
Dear Editor, The disaster caused by the tropical storms in Texas and Louisiana — seen on TV — should be a wake-up call for the Government of Guyana to immediately begin planning and preparing for annual flooding, which affects our country. We should learn from the Texas disaster as indeed from the many disasters that struck Guyana in the recent past. Guyana has been devastated by intense rainfall at various times during the year and over the last couple of decades. May we be reminded of the recent intense flooding…
Read MoreWhen will the ERC Motion be tabled in Parliament?
Dear Editor, Guyanese breathed a sigh of relief after the Minister of Social Cohesion made headlines, including in your publication, on the likely appointment of Commissioners for the Ethnic Relations Commission. But this headline lost its vigour in the same way the Minister lost his vigour to present the motion. To not present the motion was a shameful act. The motion appeared on the agenda of several sittings of the Parliament; unfortunately, it never made it through. Guyanese are unsure if it ever will, considering the pending matters Parliament has…
Read MoreA mere change of minister is not the solution to the challenges facing Guyana’s education sector
Dear Editor, This year’s published results of the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC), Caribbean Advance Proficiency Examination (CAPE), and the National Grade Six Assessment (NGSA), with their respective pass rates of 63.39, 92.57 and 48.4 %, demonstrate that students writing these examinations, particularly those who wrote CAPE and the NGSA, have shown improvements in a number of subject areas. The overall CSEC results for 2017, when compared with those for last year, were marginal, while those for NGSA were significant (pass rate of 32.28 % in 2016 to 48.4 %…
Read MoreThe present mayor of Georgetown has failed badly
Dear Editor, The international World Mayor Project which has been founded and run by the London-based City Mayors Foundation has, since 2004, had as its aim globally raising the profile of mayors who have made significant contributions to cities nationally and internationally. Municipal leaders are nominated because of their general qualities, such as honesty; management abilities; financial acumen; social, economic and environmental awareness etc. One wonders whether the Mayor of our capital city Georgetown could be nominated despite her dismal performance and low rate of achievements since ascending to that…
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