Dear Editor,
In the final paragraph of your article on page 11 of yesterday’s edition of Stabroek News captioned “‘Fresh start” GPSU wants cops, soldiers unionised’ it was reported, “Among the government members present were Minister of State Joseph Harmon, Broomes, Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan and Minister of Social Cohesion Amna Ally.”
Editor, I do believe that while it was unintended not to recognise the importance of the Minister and her responsibilities, certainly it was a slight to Minister Broomes not to have her designation/portfolio mentioned in the lineup mentioned of government ministers present at the conference, and more especially in light of the fact that the conference and Minister Broomes’s presence were in keeping with her portfolio and responsibility for labour in the Ministry of Social Protection.
While Mr Patrick Yarde did make correct mention of the Minister’s designation/portfolio in his address I do believe it is equally correct that any official mention of a minister reflects the correct form of address, properly giving full import to their designation/portfolio.
Minister Broomes it must be acknowledged has been doing a commendable job since assuming office and I offer my kudos and wish her many more continued successes.
Yours faithfully,
Shamshun Mohamed
It is the convention in newspaper reports only to give the full designation of a minister or official the first time they are mentioned; thereafter they are referred to by their surnames alone. In this instance, Minister Broomes had been mentioned already, ie, “Turning his attention to the group of government ministers who were present, he [Mr Yarde] said that Minister in the Ministry of Social Protection Simona Broomes, who has responsibility for labour, should be congratulated…” The other ministers listed in the final paragraph of the report had not been previously named.
