Responsible governments think responsibly and not selfishly, by making sacrifices at the top first

Oct 12, 2015 Letters

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Dear Editor,
Like so many Guyanese at home and abroad, I have been paying close attention to and blogging on the outrageous decision to hike the pay for coalition government officials and MPs. My main reason for writing, therefore, is two two-fold: 1) the timing of the decision just over four months in office, and 2) the coalition’s failure to honor its own campaign promise of 20%increases for public servants.
Starting with the latter, I was edified by your Friday editorial, “The pay raise and rose-tined lenses,” but was bowled over by an errant bouncer from President of the GPSU, Patrick Yarde, who was reported by Stabroek News on Friday as saying he ‘sees nothing wrong with the increases of the salaries of government ministers but (that) similar considerations must be given to other qualified persons and the inadequacies of salaries across the public sector should be addressed’. Where is his rage factor?
This guy has definitely outlived the usefulness of his purpose as head of the GPSU. He went from years of lambasting the Jagdeo and Ramotar regimes for foisting meagre pay raises every year on these unionized workers and also failing to negotiate with the union, to now tamely accepting the same behavior from the coalition regime, which went on the campaign trail earlier this year and promised 20% pay hikes, thus spurring workers to vote for the coalition.
Public servants were tricked by the coalition and, instead of Mr. Yarde being outraged, he blithely hopes and wishes others would have gotten the same type of massive hikes. Under the existing circumstances, union leaders in some democracies would have mobilized their union members to take to the streets and force the government to, at least, withdraw that massive pay hike. “You don’t have 20% to give me but you have 20% to 50% to give yourselves? How dare you?!?”should be among the placards carried by demonstrators and protestors. Let the government know that this is not the change people voted for.
Editor, my other point is that I am not against the pay raises for cabinet officials and MPs, but this could have waited until next year’s Budget and even be made retroactive, thereby giving these same officials a handsome lump sum, even if taxable. If waiting until next year would have driven anyone to engage in corrupt behavior, as Minister of State Joseph Harmon and others of his ill-advised thinking have postulated, then that person did not deserve the position in the first place, because one of the purposes of this coalition is to be an example to the PPP by putting the people of Guyana first.
By also excusing the massive pay hikes as a way to prevent coalition cabinet officials from being tempted to engage in ‘thiefing’ like the PPP officials allegedly did, Minister Harmon et al are admitting that they have no faith in their appointees to be true servants of the people, who must lead by exampleand be ready at a moment’s notice to make sacrifices.
In March this year, Nigeria’s former President Goodluck Jonathan ordered a 30% pay cut for himself, his Vice President, cabinet ministers, heads of government agencies and permanent secretaries in the face of slumping oil prices. In June, his successor, Muhammadu Buhari, opted for a50% pay cut from what Jonathan earned. Last month, as part of its own austerity measures, Finland ordered a 5% pay cut for officials and when the new ruling party assumed office in May, it ordered a reduction of ministers from 19 to 14. Why are these points of reference being made? To show that responsible governments think responsibly and not selfishly by making sacrifices at the top first.
Massive pay hikes as an excuse to prevent corruption also cannot be seen as limited to cabinet or high-level officials, but applicable to middle and lower level public servants. This coalition government has to know that to get normally free services from government, ‘palms have been greased’ or ‘money was passed under the table’ for over two decades. Cops taking bribes also became part of the culture of corruption, and I am not talking about those on the streets, but those in khaki uniforms and shirt and tie and sitting in air conditioned offices. Now, how do you stop all of these public servants from engaging in corruption when you give them a 5% pay raise, but to prevent cabinet officials from engaging incorruption you give them a 20%-50% pay raise, plus allowances?
By the way, it ought to be public knowledge by now that cabinet ministers receive both salaries and allowances (housing, entertainment, etc., plus government-issued vehicles), so either Minister Harmon comes clean and tells the nation whether the new pay hike includes allowances, or else the private media should do their job and bring this information to the people. Ordinary public servants do not receive allowances, but must pay for basic needs – rent/mortgage, transportation, food, clothing, electricity, water, etc., from the salary they receive.
In closing, I do not know if the coalition regime would re-think this unintelligent move and settle for having the same pay raise next year with a retroactive payout, or if it would risk going into a Local Government Election with this albatross around its neck and the PPP using it as bait to bring alive its dormant base.
After observing how the PPP devolved from a popular party guaranteed to win all elections because of a majority ethnic support base to a defeated party fighting to make a comeback led by the very the man who caused its decline, I have to admit that the coalition has started off on the wrong foot too soon to instill confidence in supporters that it has what it takes to stay the course, much less win the race. President Granger always seems to be running away, Prime Minister Nagamootoo always seems to be hiding and Minister Harmon seems to be the one running his mouth and the whole show with early signs of Jagdeoism. It is never too early to stop and recalibrate, guys! Five years in office is a marathon, not a sprint!
Emile Mervin  

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