Dear Editor,
Internet campus-wide is indeed a necessity for all students on campus. The launching the campus-wide high speed (2GB) Wi-Fi zone at the University of Guyana (Turkeyen Campus) is a superb initiative, which is welcomed by all students; however, what’s disturbing is the per hour billing of one hundred dollars ($100). The ‘pay as you use‘ system is ludicrous and somewhat unreasonable for students. The billing mechanism proposed by GT&T has erupted into an ongoing debate among students. The students are very dissatisfied with the thought of even implementing such a billing system.
The University of Guyana’s administration needs to come up with a more feasible billing mechanism to offset the expenses that will be incurred by GT&T. The decision should have been made in consultation with the University of Guyana Student Society (UGSS) which is responsible for representing the students, but this wasn’t the case. I do not expect GT&T to render the service free; however, the ‘pay as you use‘ system should be ruled out completely. I urge the University of Guyana’s administration to revisit the deal with GT&T and UGSS.
I therefore propose that the University of Guyana’s administration strike a deal with GT&T to pay for the said service (2GB) on a semester basis or yearly basis. This can be offset by the implementation of a mandatory technology fee (which is used worldwide by colleges and universities) of, let’s say, ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per annum. The service should be made available from 6 am to 11 pm semester round, and on a 24 hour basis during the exam period. Each student should be issued with an official UG email address and password, thus giving them access to the service. This email mechanism will be used to counteract the ‘free rider‘ effect that is likely to exist. This proposal seems viable. The only difficulty now will lie with the students‘ willingness to accept the new technology fee.
Yours faithfully,
Elton Bollers
