Granger needs to add another B to his five Bs

Oct 15, 2017 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

I am not saying that I know this country better than any other Guyanese, but I know this place. Here is what I wrote in a column headlined, “If Americans have a problems so have Guyanese,” on October 4, 2017; “In those thirty years of media experience, people would come out to me and the cynicism would go something like this; “Ah come on, Freddie, you pulling one on us; which prominent doctor witnessed the incident, you made that up.” Or I would have an expression like this; “man, Freddie no big one from the hospital was there when it happened, you put that in to make the story credible.” Believe me; I have those kinds of expressions thrown at me.”
I mentioned that revelation one-and-a-half weeks ago. On Thursday night, Karen, the sister of AFC City Councilor, Carlyle Goring, whom I got to know through her brother said to me, “I like that article on the banks and the envelope thing, man but Freddie you pull one on us when you said some people came up to you in the bank and talked about their problem with the envelope.” I cited this specific person because I may hear that this conversation (if I didn’t name her) was also an invention.
It is true that after I remonstrated with the teller, persons heard me, and came up when I was walking away and told me what they knew about the envelope hassle. One family had to close their business to deal with the bank over the proof of address hassle. Since the publication of the article on that envelope nonsense, I received a huge feedback. Early in the morning of that edition of Kaieteur News, I received an email from a stranger on the proof of address idiocy and I forwarded it to all the seniors at Kaieteur News.
Here is what this gentleman informed me. He went to renew his motor insurance and they told him his driver’s licence could be used a proof of address, but it must not be more than six months old. You know what’s the angle they were using? They want to know what your last address the past six months was. Why is this, a huge expression of asininity? There are thousands of persons living in this country that have not received correspondence over the past six months which would carry their address. One of those persons is me. I get a quarterly update from the bank like every other citizen who has a bank book.
When I read and listened to what people endured with the commercial banks on the proof of address thing, there wasn’t even a tinge of sadness in me, but unmitigated anger. Here are just two instances. One East Coast businessman said the commercial section of the US embassy sent its office attendant with a letter. It was addressed to him and he signed for it. One of the commercial banks refused to accept it as proof of address. Another gentleman told me he produced a letter from the Georgetown Hospital by its board chairman, but the bank (not the same one as above) refused it as proof of address.
One Friday night, I was “liming” with friends on Brickdam outside Demico. This gentleman came to me; he was with his friends. He informed me he came to my gate earlier in the day to drop off a letter from the Court of Appeal, but I wasn’t there. He didn’t know what it was about, but urged that very early Monday morning I visit the Chancellor’s office because he returned it. It wasn’t a pleasant weekend for me. What did the Court of Appeal want from me?
I went Monday morning and collected a formal letter with my address on it from Mrs. Jagnandan. It was signed by the Chancellor in his capacity as Chairman of the Judicial Service Commission. It informed me that my complaint against Magistrate Judy Lutchman for misconduct was investigated and no wrongdoing found. I guess the banks would not accept such a letter as proof of address. They would want the envelope which didn’t have any post date.
The reaction I got from that column on the envelope thing with the commercial banks has further driven deeper in me the belief that we are a dead nation. How could people accept such mistreatment? This country cries out for better treatment of its citizens. The President has achieved national attention for his five Bs – books, bicycles, boats, buses and breakfast. I am definitely recommending another B that the President should give Guyanese – betterment.

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