Let’s make GWI a case study

Jul 28, 2008 Letters

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Dear Editor,
I am not one of your regular letter writers and certainly am not into rambling with the powers that be and element of Guyana’s elite political and socioeconomic structure.

But it’s hard to continue enduring the pain of persevering to ‘remain in and contribute to’ the development of your Native Land, with the burden of contributing 33S!% of your earnings plus 16% VAT.

That is, in layman economics, 49S!% of your spending power going into the hands of the so-called leaders who govern this nation, who from all intentions and purposes seem to be accountable to no one but themselves.

Mr. Editor, forgive me if I am wrong, and shield me from the powers that be less my writing results in serious reprimand (too much for the poor to bear) from the intolerable hands of the possessors of the State.

 I can recall that the media and some concerned sections of civil society as well as the political opposition had serious reservations about the reappointment of Mr. Karan Singh to head GWI back in September 2007.

One thing I hate most about my country is the strategic division of our people along racial lines by our so-called leaders to satisfy and feed their own political ambitions.

Thus, I will not attempt to make any claims of racial marginalisation or racial cleansing at GWI.
However, in the interest of truth and the realities of the issues life in Guyana today, I challenge your newspaper and every other media organisation, NGOs and caring Civil Society Organisations to make GWI a Case Study limited to the period ‘September 2007 – Present’ of its hiring and firing practices.

Let’s examine the cases of hiring and firing in a much unbiased way. Mr. Singh was appointed CEO of GWI to get a job done (meet objectives set by his employer) and therefore should not be dammed for justly cleansing the entity of persons whose actions and performance are corrupt or found wanting.

It is sad that all the stakeholders that were concerned for the wellbeing of GWI at the time Mr. Singh was appointment are now too busy to assess what has occurred  and continues to occur within this entity in the pass 11 months.

Let’s seek and publish for the benefit of the public and most certainly to inform our Honourable President and Head of the Presidential Secretariat whose blessings Mr. Singh received at the time of his appointment, the findings of such a study.

If the finding of your case study is not disturbing to the powers that appointed my good friend Mr. Singh, then we can safely conclude that he is certainly attaining the objectives of his employer for this public entity.

From the inception of Mr. Singh’s ‘installation’ at GWI to date, due to his unorthodox management style, this public entity has seen the resignation of more than 11 senior managers (inclusive of executive directors), that is, at least one/month.

There have been questionable dismissals of at least eight senior staff with individual services ranging from 10 to 35 years with the entity. Some dismissals being done execution style with persons losing all their accrued benefits.

Mr. Editor, as an insider, I am confident that this entity can ill afford to lose many of these hardworking individuals that had their livelihoods destroyed by the stroke of a pen, and the repercussions will be felt in the already wanting quality of service provided by this important public utility.

Let the study be done and its findings publicized to show if the dismissal of managers for the Interland Department, Energy Manager, Divisional Managers, Senior Accounts Clerk etc, was just and in the best interest of this public utility.

What is the position of the Ministry of Labour pertaining to the numerous complaints of wrongful dismissal? I will refuse to venture into the issue as it relates to ethnicity in the management skill exodus and firing that is taking place at GWI and hope that there is a media remaining in Guyana that has both the will power and investigative ability to expose the unjust treatment many Guyanese professionals who choose to remain home and contribute their 49S!% of our spending power to this country’s development have to endure, or simply leave without justice or even a hearing into the injustice being meted out by the powerful untouchables of this hour.

It is sad when the government of the day places an important utility company (Water is Life) in the hands of one individual.

Given the present state of this utility, which does not seem to trouble our national decision makers in the least, I am of the opinion that the provision of a quality service by GWI to the people of Guyana is a distant second to some secret agenda.

I request of you Mr. Editor, that this case study of GWI should highlight why some people are currently free to source the wrong materials from halfway around the world for millions of taxpayers $$ and just receive a pat on the shoulder as reprimand while others have to hit the road for errors (in some cases genuine mistakes) that had occurred since 2006.

Apart from the apparent silence from your newspaper and every other media organisation, NGOs and caring Civil Society Organisations, where has Mr. Fredrick Kissoon gone? Mr. Kissoon had commenced a well deserved observation of the happening at GWI but apparently is now too busy with more important issues than to attempt to bring a voice to the weak and vulnerable professionals who choose to stay in Guyana.

Even if we ignore the welfare of those who suffer, let this case study be done in the national interest of averting the imminent street protest that may erupt throughout the length and breath of this country for the poor quality of service being delivered from one of our most important public utility organisation, whose bills when issued requires that attention of all whether the service is of an acceptable standard or not.

Concerned Citizen

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