Two missing cell phones and an incredible, monumental expression of fear

Oct 30, 2010 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

I was sitting with Dale Andrews, a senior reporter of this newspaper, in the waiting room of a private medical clinic when a woman turned to me, called out my name and solicited my help in recovering the confiscated cell phone of her neighbour.
She explained that her friend had her Blackberry on while sitting in the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court room. It rang and Magistrate Judy Latchman ordered the court orderly (a policeman) to take the phone away. That was two months ago and the woman has not had her phone returned to her.
Needless to say a Blackberry is an expensive phone. I was told even a cheap Blackberry is expensive. Just for the record and for the eyes of Khurshid Sattaur, I have a “gooseberry” which I think goes for six thousand at GT&T. Glad to inform Mr. Satttaur, too, that I cannot afford a Blackberry and am not interested in having one. My “gooseberry” serves me good.
As the lady spoke to me, Dale Andrews told me that he knows of another Judy Latchman confiscation. He didn’t say if it was a Blackberry and I didn’t ask. I spoke to Mr. Alexander, officer in charge of Sparendaam Police Station. He indicated that the phones are not with the police so they must be with the Magistrate. I journeyed to Magistrate Latchman’s court.
I was surprised that her first words to me were that I had taught her political studies in her first year at UG. Ms. Latchman is a pleasant person with a winning smile. I didn’t win anything from her though. She refused to answer my question as to which law empowers her to forcefully retain the cell phone of someone who may have insulted the court by having it on. Only one question Ms. Latchman responded to. She told me that she is not in physical possession of the seized phones.
I figured that the Sparendaam police have the phone. Mr. Alexander was not in office. I was told that he was doing duties at the Convention Center. I didn’t find him there. Went back the next day; same results. I caught him on his cell and he asked me to call him back immediately. I did so but got no answer.
At this point I am unable to determine who has the phones. But this I can tell you; it must have hurt someone to have his or her Blackberry taken away, never to be returned just because it rang while court was in session.
This is Guyana where the most bizarre things happen. How about peremptory expulsion of students right in the middle of the school term, not for talking on the cell phone, but for mere possession of it? The parents complained to two opposition Parliamentarians (Backer and Riehl) and to the Minister of Education. All three did nothing to stop the illegality.
Take the lady that claims her newborn baby died because of neglect of nurses at Georgetown Public Hospital. Her fear is unbelievable. She wrote in a letter in the Thursday edition of this newspaper of how badly she was treated by the nurses after she checked in to deliver her baby
Then because of further neglect the baby died. Here are her words; “It is only by the grace of God I survived that ordeal but the same cannot be said of my baby… nothing at all can compensate me for the loss and pain I suffered …someone needs to be made a strong example before we can see attitudinal changes in the heath sector.”
Then this lady refused to sign her real name and put the word, “Survivor” under her letter. Looked at from any angle, this lady’s fear is incredible. She almost died. She lost her baby. All of this, as she claimed, due to uncaring attitude of nurses and the attending doctor. But she is afraid to identify herself.
You would think that because of the terrible suffering she went through, she would have had some courage to come forward. You would think at least she owes her dead baby the obligation to be strong and in the name of her dead son, fight for changes so that other babies would not have to die the way hers did.
But no! The woman is afraid.
What makes this situation so exasperating is that this very woman is calling on other citizens to take a course of action she is afraid of doing – she wants others to confront the nurses and make them examples. In other words, some courageous person must step forward and do her task for her.
This certainly is a country of incredible fear.

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Two missing cell phones and an incredible, monumental expression of fear

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