Three “trivially significant” and introductory points: Public Servant above refer to workers employed by the Government via numerous entities.
Next, I have utilized, for many years, the late Leslie Melville’s description of the nation’s traditional Public Servants as the “Employed Poor.”
Lastly, towards the end of 1992, I played a role in the administration/management of the Guyana Public Service Union’s (GPSU’s) Members Club (still located at the Head Office, New Garden and Regent streets in the Capital. New Garden is now Shiv Chanderpaul Drive but interestingly that roadway outside the President’s Office was chosen to honour a humble great.) Anyway, I recall beautiful drama when the Clubroom downstairs was, at long last, re-conditioned. New President Cheddi Jagan was invited to meet socially and informally with his employees and their representatives on a Friday night.
As Cheddi stepped through the front, main door the brand new lights were switched on in colourful stunning welcome. It was almost breathtaking. I saw Dr Jagan being genuinely impressed and sharing his famous smile with the GPSU President- (for life?) Patrick Yarde. We all thought, on that convivial night, that lights of hope for a bright, fruitful relationship between the new PPP government and its own workers were turned on.
Alas! According to GPSU’s Maximum Leader Patrick, any hope of such a relationship seemed to have been interred with the bones of Cheddi before he was cremated. Succeeding PPP Presidents and the relevant Ministers presided over the worst relationships between Government and its own “civil” public servants. This brief column today is my expression of full support for today’s Public Servants, inclusive of Mr Yarde’s “fresh start.”
After twenty years of teaching and writing readers in the Education Ministry, I accepted a high level acting appointment in the then Ministry of Information. So I feel safe enough in recording a personalized connection with varied levels of public service. And I cannot erase both the wrongs and “rights” demonstrated by Governments towards their workers since I started my own “Government-worker“ life in 1961.
Burnham, Jagdeo, Granger
No need for me to repeat the view that the PPP regarded previous public servants as pro PNC. Hence that Party’s administrations’ attitude to its own “employed poor”. (Incidentally, what would a head-count of today’s actual public servants reveal Party-wise?)
I’m old enough to recall Mr Burnham’s (?) Not–a-cent-more outburst. And to readily remember Burnham’s annual Pre- Christmas imposition of salary “increases” for his workers. Collective Bargaining with the GPSU? Joke. Forbes, after granting very minimal increases would declare that “My government employees deserve relief to enjoy their Christmas-time activities. This interim payment will in no way prejudice further early Government-union negotiations on this issue.” Of course those negotiations never happened.
That was the genesis of those salary-increases impositions. Former Finance Minister- President Jagdeo took that obscenity to its highest height. Even ignoring an Armstrong arbitral award in favour of Public Servants. Ashni Singh was “genius” in using statistics at Budget time to regale Public Servants with his tidings of comparative good treatment of his workers, ignoring the realities of inflation and private sector exploration.
Hope springs eternal in the Public Servants’ breast. One of new President Granger’s first activities was to meet with his senior officers to give certain relevant assurances: Commission of inquiry; Staff college/institute to uplift professional qualifications; de-politicising of appointments; salary increases as promised. I suppose that competing realities prevented a substantial salary increase in Mr Jordan’s short-term first Budget. But nothing must impede GPSU-Granger government collective bargaining to negotiate decent rewards. And in that context I urge Mr Yarde to remember and to “fight” for non-salary benefits – Minister Scott’s Housing, Buying Clubs; Medical Schemes; even subsidised transportation. I also welcome Yarde’s declaration to keep government under close scrutiny regarding its treatment of its own workers- Melville’s “employed poor”. Power can corrupt even former public servants! And trade unionists!
Bharrat’s Secrets?
Not “Secrets” about Mr Jagdeo himself – his life, his wealth, his future plans. (I suspect that new US Ambassador Holloway and the local SARU investigators can uncover much about Bharrat’s Bargains.
I refer, however, to what Mr Jagdeo probably knows about the acquisitions of his former colleagues, his current party comrades, his private sector buddies. Even his current neighbours!
Consider: the man was most powerful for years.
He superintended huge business deals and projects- from E- governance fiascoes, to spectrum allocations, to hinterland road construction, to mining investments. He would know who “received what”. Economist and politician, international champion of the Earth and friend of overseas captains of industry, a former Presidential Bharrat must have secrets and privacies for many.
Folk wisdom says “when yuh own louse bite yuh, it bite yuh hot”. From military to police intelligence, Bharrat would have known things.
Just why is he always going on about Minister Ramjattan’s alleged “holdings”, For example? Recall that they were once Freedom House Comrades. Discuss…
Ponder well
I.) I agree with Mr Ramkarran and others: since Britain and America were party to the 1899 arbitral award, they should be more pro-active in their support for modern-day Guyana’s position against Venezuela.
2.) In keeping with my Bharrat piece immediately above I quote a letter-writer on Monday: “It is no secret that many persons in key positions were given house lots and assisted with finances to build their own homes, so I guess many felt obligated to obey the PPP wishes even if it meant losing respect and credibility.
“It is clear for all to see that this Government has become complacent and neglectful in its duties and responsibilities of restructuring and strengthening the state media.” (Do you agree?)
`Til next week!
(Comments allanafenty@yahoo.com)
