Who were asked for donations?

Feb 15, 2011 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

The government has said that it was seeking donations for its one laptop per family project. But just who were these donations sought from and why was there no public notice that donations were being sought for the project?
Who exactly was the government asking for donations? Is the government willing to make these names known just who it approached for donations of computers and what was the response to its request?
Did it ask those companies that enjoy multimillion-dollar concessions for the donations, and did it make it clear that no strings are to be attached?
There is much wrong about a government accepting donations from private firms, unless there is a public appeal that allows for everyone interested to participate.
Therefore it is for the government to indicate to the people of Guyana whether it was selective in making its appeals for donations, and to now indicate whether it is now willing for Guyanese to totally subscribe to this project.
But since it has stated that it is making an appeal for computers, why then not have a public appeal to Guyanese both at home and overseas for donations of laptops.
Now it does not mean that these persons have to go and buy a laptop. Since the government may be able to source these laptops cheaply, what can happen is that every person willing to make a donation can sponsor a laptop which will be sourced through public tendering.
I am sure that there are thousands of Guyanese living overseas who would have been willing to make a contribution to the project.
If Guyana is seeking 90,000 computers and these will be purchased in bulk, then it is quite possible to obtain a unit for as little as US$150.
At this price, then, Guyanese living in New York alone may have been able to contribute about 20,000 units and when combined with Guyanese living in other parts of the world and those at home, an additional 10,000 could have been raised within one year.
This means that from overseas donations alone, the Guyana Government could have within one year satisfied the total amount of computers that it would be donating.
And this would avoid the government having to borrow or use any grant aid for the procurement of these computers.
In Guyana, there are also thousands of persons, including businesses that would have been willing to donate computers for the project. Just as much computers could have been raised locally then could have been raised from overseas.
The government has always been saying that it wants to see Guyanese, both at home and abroad, playing a greater role in the affairs of Guyana. So why not make a public appeal after the tenders for the 90,000 computers have been received and the successful bidder identified?
This will allow Guyanese overseas to show just how serious they are about contributing to the well-being of their countrymen at home. A great many of us like to be critical of developments at home and fool ourselves that we are better off than those in Guyana, but the fact remains that there are very many wealthy persons at home and there are just as many in Guyana who can match any donations received from overseas.
If the government takes this approach, it may find that people will be far more vigilant about the project. If Guyanese are contributing computers to the project, whether from overseas or at home, they will want to ensure that these computers do not find their way into the hands of the wrong persons.
They will ensure that these computers only go to the poor and they will have their friends and relatives taking an interest in the project. And this is what is required so that this project can be very successful.
It is not just about distributing computers to those who do not have any. It is about reaping a whole range of benefits from having computers in your homes.
Your bills can be paid on line, you can communicate faster with others and you can access to more educational resources. Online courses can now be delivered right into the homes.
In order to buy Guyanese into this project a way has to be found to allow persons to become involved. And what better way for this to happen than the government facilitating Guyanese from all walks of life and both at home and in the USA donating laptops.
In that way, the government does not have to worry about finding the money for the laptops and more importantly does not have to worry about the project being seen as an election gimmick.

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Who were asked for donations?

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