Dear Editor,
I have witnessed what I view as a major injustice meted out to a man who came to serve a country to which he owed nothing, when he could have very well been doing something more personally beneficial.
Professor Lawrence Carrington was recommended and cajoled by the Vice-Chancellor of UWI, Professor E N Harris (a Guyanese by birth), to come out of retirement and serve on a joint UWI-UG committee which focused on UWI’s assistance for the development of the UG. Recognizing Professor Carrington’s abilities and established track record as an academic and administrator, and the fact that the UG had no VC at the time, persons in high authority with responsibility for the university further cajoled him to take up the position of VC. He reluctantly accepted a one-year contract as VC ad interim from April 1, 2009. After further connecting with the people of UG and the people of Guyana, he accepted another two year contract (which, mind you, was issued without contestation from the University Council).
I will repeat: Professor Carrington was at the time of his first engagement with the University of Guyana, a retiree. He had served the UWI for decades and retired as Professor Emeritus of Creole Linguistics.
A brief profile on the web site for the Society for Caribbean Linguistics indicates the following as a part of his profile: Doctor Honoris causa, Faculty of Philosophy, University of Bern, Switzerland; Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Chairman, Board for Non-Campus Countries and Distance Education of The University of the West Indies from 2000 to 2007; Secretary of the SCL from 1976 to 1980 and President from 1986 to 1988; and Honorary member of the SCL since 2008.
There is no information that tells me that Professor Carrington owed Guyana something and that he could have been pressured to take the position of VC out of guilt. He was in his late 60s when he took the post and could have very well have been at home in Trinidad relaxing and enjoying the company of his wife and children. Nonetheless, he chose to come and serve this country, our country. The true record of his service is there to be examined and has been partly expounded on in several public communications. Perhaps indicative of the high level of professionalism and integrity with which he served, is the fact that he is the only VC in anyone’s memory who delivered a parting address to the staff. Professor Carrington served our country through his service at the university better than most, if not all the Guyanese before him.
In recent times we have been hearing statements from persons in positions of authority in relation to the country and university that are intent only on dragging the reputation of Professor Carrington into the mud with theirs. The same man who they begged to come out of retirement to serve us. The same man to whom they issued two contracts. The same man of whom the majority of the university staff openly stated that they approved of him continuing as VC.
Further, this is done after the university was starved of funds, and almost every attempt at meaningful development was thwarted by the devious actions of those who should be helping the process. It is clear that much, if not all, of what the UG suffered particularly over the last few years was the work of those bent on dishonouring one man to justify his removal.
It is my opinion that Professor Carrington should be allowed to serve the university until a qualified substantive VC is appointed, and that he should be honoured for his service and given a grand send-off. Instead, he is almost unceremoniously being kicked to the curb and attempts are being made to drag him into the dirt. Out of respect for him and in the true Guyanese spirit I cannot sit by and watch this any longer. I also implore my colleagues at the university to help right this wrong that is being done.
I wish to publicly apologise to Professor Carrington, on behalf of the decent people of Guyana, for all that he has had to endure over the last few years at the hands of those in authority, and all that he continues to suffer even now. I wish to assure him, that the Guyanese people are not like those who are knifing him in the back.
They are the poorest representation of what a Guyanese is, and the nation must ask itself, how did they come to be our representatives?
Yours faithfully,
C R Bernard
Lecturer II
Department of Biology/Centre
for the Study of Biological Diversity
University of Guyana
Turkeyen Campus
