Dear Editor,
I recently watched the debate in Parliament with Hon. Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence debating about members of the PPP/C’s exorbitant medical bills funded by taxpayers’ money. I learnt recently that our President Granger is not in Guyana but is in Cuba on medical checkups and prior to that in Trinidad. I have nothing against the President nor his Cabinet Ministers but I am a bit concerned as to why none of our Ministers want to use the GPHC or Balwant Singh Hospital, or the Woodlands Hospital.
Most of our Ministers are running to top class hospitals abroad at the expense of taxpayers’ hard- earned dollars. Here is an interesting scenario. A lady lost her baby recently at the GPHC while the doctor was on his phone chatting. I saw it on the news but that story is buried already from the media. Many of our poor citizens are dying at the hands of ill-trained doctors.
The past and present administrations created hospitals they will never enter nor their families but we must go there. Not long ago one of our female Pastors lost her husband at the GPHC from a heart blockage that the man could have survived if the Ministry of Public Health could have sent him abroad the same way our Prime Minister went to treat his heart.
Just a few months ago we saw another young athlete from Rose Hall die at the GPHC. If this government was concerned or the Ministry of Public Health they would have taken that athlete abroad for treatment. There is no real concern nor love for our people from this administration.
I am seeing often our citizens are begging for money to go take an operation abroad while this government just watches rather than fly the sick abroad to save their lives. Our erudite and eloquent Minister of State said that our Cabinet Ministers can afford to go as far as Ireland for medical treatment because they have the ‘’load’’ to pay. May I ask now why the Finance Minister cannot put aside one billion Guyana Dollars in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Heath as emergency funds to help our sick citizens pay medical bills abroad? How long will our people beg on National Television to live?
They have money for insignificant things like Mashramani and Carifesta, money to build arches and impudent celebrations but we cannot build modern hospitals with better health care. Now that billions will come from the oil money I will be happy to write this government a proposal pro bono of a new vision for Guyana or the new Government that will come to power in the near future.
I remembered two profound quotations from George Orwell’s book Animal Farm:
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
“Man is the only creature that consumes without producing. He does not give milk, he does not lay eggs, he is too weak to pull the plough, he cannot run fast enough to catch rabbits. Yet he is lord of all the animals. He sets them to work, he gives back to them the bare minimum that will prevent them from starving, and the rest he keeps for himself.”
These elegant truths from Orwell’s magnificent book fits our political scenario here in Guyana. Our leaders crave political power and recognition but could care less for the citizens of this nation. That’s what Orwell meant when he said ‘’but some animals are more equal than some’’ depicting man with a greedy and unscrupulous mentality.
Real leadership is putting people’s interest at heart before your own. As I contemplate voting next week I haven’t seen an honest eligible candidate to vote for as the mendacious politics of this nation have corrupted the psyche of our people. Guyana needs young energetic leaders with a new vision to obliterate archaic political ideologies.
Yours faithfully,
Reverend Gideon Cecil