By Ravi Dev I have always had mixed emotions when thinking about our “independence”. I am old enough to have experienced first-hand the violent wrenching apart of our peoples that preceded this supposedly blessed state and left it in quotation marks for me ever since. I was in short-pants as the police fired tear gas to clear “peaceful protesters” squatting on my primary schools steps at Uitvlugt during the 80-day strike of 1962. It was an open secret, known even by schoolboys, that the British and the US wanted the…
Read MoreCategory: Letters
‘Because We Care’ grants were equitable
Dear Editor, I am happy to have provided some amusement for Allan Fenty (“Stabroek News”, Giving and Telling about it, Feb, 12, 2016) through my last Guyana Times Sunday column. I had as much fun writing it, and I just wish to reply to his query about my thoughts regarding the PPP/C’s Government $10,000 “Because We Care” grants to parents of school children. Those grants were a budgeted benefit approved by Parliament and much welcomed by all of Guyana’s parents, Indian, African, Amerindian, Chinese and Mixed alike. It was never…
Read MoreAG’s and President’s salaries should be taxable
Dear Editor, The 2016 national Budget speech argues that this budget seeks to address inequalities and discrimination with a heavy emphasis on increased taxes/licences and tax collection especially from the persons who are categorised as “self-employed”. The credibility (and compliance) of this case would be “legitimately” advanced were the President and the Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs to pay tax on their “public service” salary. Another Budget presented in the Parliament and yet another failed opportunity for President Granger to address the issue of his “public service” non-taxable…
Read MoreGovt must come to its senses on Wales issue
Dear Editor, The support given on any issue to a group or individual, government or non-governmental, is premised on upholding and respecting laws, international conventions, charters, time-honoured principles and the fundamental rights and freedoms of citizens/workers. No one must count on me to give support on any matter that borders on the violation and transgressing of these. The Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), which I have the honour to represent has consistently taken a stand on these tenets regardless of who forms the government or which non-governmental organisation/person is affected.…
Read MoreMinister Trotman was given the wrong portfolio
Dear Editor, It is without a doubt that the Natural resources sector in Guyana is by far one of the more important ones. I will not contest any statement to the effect that the mining sector is facing problems. It is rather surprising however to see Minister Trotman making irresponsible and inaccurate statements about the Forestry sector recently. Trotman has spoken about large-scale corruption in the sector on numerous occasions. He however failed to demonstrate to the Guyanese people the extent of this corruption. Where is the independent audit report?…
Read MoreInternational politics and oil prices
Dear Editor, The price of oil has fallen dramatically in a very short period of time. While this is having a huge impact on oil producing/exporting countries, those non-producing countries are benefitting significantly. In Guyana, it is estimated that the cost of generating electricity has dropped from US$0.28 at the beginning of last year to about US$0.09 per kilowatt today. The explanation/s for the current low oil prices varies. The talk about the slowing down of the world economy, mainly China, is one prominent explanation. Another is the over-supply of…
Read MoreThe Wales debacle: Sunlight?
By Ravi Dev While Dr Clive Thomas might be a “town man”, he knows sugar as well, if not more than most who “come from the logies”. And that is why I was quite surprised when he, as Chairman of GuySuCo, went along with the abrupt announcement of the closure of Plantation Wales. Incidentally, I have never really accepted the foisted euphemism of changing “Plantation” to “estate”. This must have happened sometime after independence, since I distinctly remember as a boy in Primary School (Uitvlugt Church of Scotland School) painstakingly…
Read MoreRacism and political favouritism should be eradicated in Guyana
Dear Editor, For decades I have been advocating racial harmony in the country of my birth, but my pleas were ignored both by the PPP and PNC administrations and it seems as if the new APNU/AFC might not be different. It is like six for one and half a dozen for the other. I wonder what can be done to change this sad and worrying situation which is the bug-bear of the nation. Growing up we were told that the British sowed the “divide and rule” seed and when Forbes…
Read MoreDoes City Hall appreciate what it will take to make Georgetown a green city?
Dear Editor, There has been a lot of talk by the Georgetown City Council recently about making our capital city a green city. But is it anything more than just that? Talk? I have hardly seen any real initiatives in this direction. Of course there has been the posting of monstrous billboards all over the city with green city catchphrases but with the only thing being green about that is the millions of dollars that the city has wasted on sloganeering. Then there has been the poorly attended Green Conference…
Read MoreContract employees – How will the President act?
Dear Editor, As the National Assembly sits to consider the Estimates of the Public Sector for the year 2016, the number of contract employees and costs associated therewith will no doubt receive much attention. In Ram & McRae’s Focus on Guyana’s National Budget 2016, we expressed our disappointment on increases in both the number and cost of contract employees, stating that this was “not healthy for our democracy and places a strain on Article 38 G of the Constitution which requires the public service to be free from political influence.”…
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