Time that non-politicians be vested with the honour of OE

Dec 22, 2008 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
I write in support of calls upon the authorities of Guyana to honour Mr. Shivnarine Chanderpaul with The Order of Excellence of Guyana (O.E.).

While it is not common public knowledge that the President is one of the key officials who played a role in the selection process, he does; and it is high time that he and the rest of the appointments committee act to fulfill this widespread sentiment of the people that Shivnarine Chanderpaul be given the country’s highest civilian honour at the earliest possibility.

Mr. Chanderpaul is currently the most deserving person for the O.E., not only because of his well-known accomplishments in national and international cricket, but also because he has placed Guyana on the map of the world.

Chanderpaul is currently the International Cricket Council’s Cricketer of the Year. He has recently surpassed Sir Garfield Sobers on the run-scoring tally, and will soon past Sir Vivian Richards, and will then take on Brian Lara’s huge lead. In the match against Sri Lanka, he scored 10 runs (4 and 6) in the last two balls to win the game for the West Indies, a historic achievement. The man has saved his team-mates from shame many times on the cricket field. And with 20 test centuries and an average just under 50 runs per test match, Shivnarine Chanderpaul will surely add to his tally and generate more curiosity about his native land – Guyana.

We know that political affiliations trump everything else in Guyana, and many have come to view awardees with cynicism. All of the people who have been given the O.E. have been politicians. During the PNC rule, the awardees have been mostly PNC officials, and since the PPP time, mostly PPP officials.

This is a great shame, not only because politicians exclusively get the O.E., but also many of the awardees themselves were part and parcel of a Government that rigged elections to wield political power.

It is high time the contributions of deserving non-politicians be dignified with the nation’s highest award.
While Shivnarine Chanderpaul ought to get the O.E., after him, other deserving non-politicians, such as people who have created businesses in Guyana and generate large numbers of employment, should be considered.

The name Toolsie Persaud comes to mind. People in other fields of work must also be considered as well. The late Professor NP Bishun, who returned to Guyana and served at the UG Biology Department till his passing, should also be considered.

He was a man of tremendous humility, but few people knew that he made pioneering discoveries in the field of medical cytogenetics and has published extensively in this area of scientific endeavour.

To this day, Dr. Bishun’s works are cited by scientists all over the world, in particular in the field of cancer research. I am sure there are other deserving great souls.

Dr. Somdat Mahabir

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Time that non-politicians be vested with the honour of OE

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