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Mr. President, when will “the good life for all,” trickle down to the youth and the underprivileged?
DEAR MR. PRESIDENT,
I would like to know: when will “the good life for all,” trickle down to the youth and the underprivileged Guyanese populace? I keep hearing the good life rhetoric being thrown around loosely; every time I hear it, it imbues within me a sense of cynicism.
Don’t get me wrong, I believe these are admirable words, but the length of time that the good life is taking to reach the poor masses irks me.
I am a young single mother, the holder of a Masters’ Degree; I live from pay cheque- to- Pay Cheque; barely managing to pay my bills, and feed my child. I dream of one day owning my own home, having a car, and savings on the bank in the event of an emergency; I would also like to take my child on holidays and have funds that I can assist my aging parents. But the reality is, this is just a dream, one which appears elusive for many like myself (and I have spoken with quite a few of my learned peers, whose reality is similar to my own, not for the lack of trying to create successful livelihoods).
There is an old adage, “all men are born equal,” consequently, I believe that equality is subjective; as equality and poverty it seems are synonyms; or they occupy an erratic juxtaposition in the social order.
Equality and social hierarchy hinge on social capital and opportunities. Guyana’s Bourgeoisie class has traditionally maintained a position of power and control over the impoverished masses by withholding wealth. This is evidenced by the number of unemployed youth (both qualified and unqualified); citizens on welfare; those deserving welfare but cannot access or are denied this basic human service for one reason or another: they are not ragged enough to be deserving.
The masses of young people cannot access house lots: because of finances, they don’t have children or some empathetic circumstance. There is segregation of communities for the wealthy and the poor, such as: Tiger Bay, Sophia, East Ruimveldt, Charlestown, Albouystown etc., which are traditionally referred to as depressed communities , where evidence of poverty and slow development is apparent. In contrast to communities such as, D‘Aguiar Park, Pradoville, Republic Park, Nandy Park, Prashad Nagar, Bel-Air, Subryanville etc., where our “wealthy” Guyanese elites live.
Their children are able to access “quality” education at private institutions, which lend to them attaining placements at grade “A” schools, while the masses of Guyanese children attend the numerous grade “C” schools – (schools ill-equipped with resources and adequately trained personnel). These students only hope to secure enough subjects at CXC to get a decent paying job, while their wealthy counterparts, through family and alumni connections are able to secure top jobs effortlessly.
Time does not permit me to discuss pay inequality, but the numerous strikes for wage increases paint a lucid picture. Hence, my question: when will Guyana’s youth who are not party affiliates (on either side of the house), who do not belong to Guyana’s elite social circles, have a chance to earn a decent wage, so that we can be able to lead sustainable lives and say all Guyanese are equal?
I can hear Karl Marx in his capitalist discourses saying, “It will never happen” because, “the world’s hegemonic systems are so ordered to maintain systems of inequality.” But like Che Guevara, Fidel Castro, Muammar Gadaffi, and many other socialist thinkers, you have promised to dismantle these capitalist ideas that divide us.
I would like to see this promise reverberate a change in the life of all Guyanese and not just a minute section of the populace as we continually see. Stop the rhetoric and give us all an opportunity to eat from the “good life” table!
Sincerely,
Starved Youth
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