Dear Editor,
While the rules of engagement on the determination of salary increases for 2021 may not have been followed to the script, it is without a doubt that many public servants appreciate the receipt of the seven per cent salary increase, retroactive to the beginning of the year. Naturally, the representative unions were up in arms demanding to be heard at the negotiation table, not to mention, the breach in relevant guidelines regarding the determination of the quantum of increase in salary for public servants. A cogent response was received, identifying a number of issues influencing the final decision. While throwing a big hint that public servants need to seriously consider their choice of representatives, the truncated rationale was public servants were encouraged to reflect on the vested interests of their union representatives, trenchant biases which did not serve public servants well, whenever the current opposition happened to be in government. This is not to say that matters represented by the unions are insubstantial – they are not. However, public servants can attest with their hard earned experience the truth behind the proffered observations. Covid-19 has extracted tremendous costs the world over, with Guyana not being spared the brunt of its effects. It has been severe on small businesses, their employees, vendors and other individuals not in stable jobs. This is not to mention children to normal school life. Omricon, the most recent variant, appears to spread more rapidly, though its effects appear significantly muted compared with the experience of Delta, etc.
Guyanese are therefore encouraged to learn as much as possible from official sources and make an informed decision on adopting to become vaccinated. An unvaccinated person becomes an unwitting host to Covid-19. More vaccinated persons reduce the rate of severity of ill-health from being exposed to Covid-19, as well as the mortality associated with Covid-19. Most importantly however is that becoming vaccinated increases the stability of the population and nudges the country as a whole back to normalcy where consumers feel more encouraged and freer to spend and get money circulating back in the economy again. Unvaccinated Guyanese are therefore strongly urged to consider their personal well-being, that of their at-risk families and friends, of the economy, the population as a whole, and more actively explore becoming vaccinated. Unvaccinated persons are strongly encouraged to continue to wear masks to protect themselves and those vulnerable at home. Consideration could be extended to retaining commercial air travel to benefit as much as possible from visiting Guyanese, etc., subject to incoming passengers being required to produce proof of vaccination. Some consideration could also be extended to relaxing the mask mandate for vaccinated persons within defined groups, while a relaxation of the curfew would significantly go hand-in-hand with greater vaccine drives, such as creating vaccine sites in densely trafficked public areas such as Stabroek market, aimed at making vaccines more accessible to the unvaccinated, inclusive of those too busy to consider taking time off to get vaccinated.
Sincerely,
Craig Sylvester.
