University education was free from 1976 up to when the PPP instituted fees

Jun 02, 2019 AFC Column, Features / Columnists

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Some more extraordinary silliness came out of the mouth of Guyana’s most logorrheic politician last week. The former President has now accused the Coalition Government of “stealing” his idea to institute free education at the university.
Some people were left stuttering, jaws dropped and palms turned up. Everyone asked the same question: “How many people could Jagdeo hope to fool into forgetting that it was in his ‘reign’ (1999 to 2011) that the right to free education at the university was taken away?”
At that time, the PPP government had told the nation that they were going to implement something called “user fees” to help UG to fund itself. They completely ignored the benefits that many Guyanese youths have gained since 1976, the year that education was made free by the PNC government.
Older folks would remember an old Guyanese slogan, ‘Free education from Nursery to University’. That is what Guyanese born after the mid-20th Century grew up on – never having to pay a cent for education until they were past a Bachelor’s degree.
Free education from nursery to university was an entrenched right for every Guyanese citizen. Jagdeo and the PPP rolled over it in the 1990’s and created some cruel hardships for students and families.
It stands to reason that the University of Guyana did not have a culture of earning money to sustain itself. This is not to say that all was well at Guyana’s highest learning institution. The management, academics and Council struggled hard through some lean years, but nevertheless managed to produce a long list of outstanding alumni, many of whom are still contributing to Guyana and the Commonwealth, and to the workforce at home.
Even after the PPP re-introduced fees at UG, the conditions or the quality of education did not get better, not for staff or students. For many years UG could not hire better trained staff. Thankfully, the university’s fortunes turned around when a new, non-governmental Council was sworn in, but that is a story for another column.
So recently, the campaigning former President declared that this Coalition Government has stolen ‘his idea’. The PPP is running out of steam. Their stories become shallower, unable to stand up to the simplest truths. All they could come up with now is a promise to free up university education when it was they who took it away 20 years ago?
To be frank, we believe that Jagdeo’s sole intention when he made that announcement was to try to dull the effects of Prime Minister Nagamootoo’s announcement during the Government Outreach in Essequibo. PM was on a roll and he gave the people Government’s commitment to restore free university education.
“In the future, David Granger and I are looking at the possibility of abolishing fees at the university to address that issue of free access to education. You can become an achiever. The multiple effects of our Government are affordability and achievement, so we want to return to being a nation of achievers, a nation that knows where to take the country, not by political power, but by the power of the mind, the power of the intellect.”
The current status of fee-paying at UG allows students to access tuition loans through a revolving fund that gives them 15 years to repay. PM said that Cabinet is adamant that this fund must be converted to a non-repayable grant that will help students to reach their true potential in their own country, a soon-to-become exporter of oil and gas.
“That is what democracy is all about. It is intended to enrich your mind so you can take this country, in the age of oil and gas and wealth, and develop it in a way that generations before us could not even dream about,” he said.
Mr. Jagdeo is going to get even more uncomfortable as Government continues to reach out to citizens, taking all public services into their communities. Social Protection Minister, Amna Ally put it into context.
“Government understands how hard it is for Essequibians to have to cross two rivers to reach the City to access Government’s services, so Cabinet thinks it is best to bring Government to you the people instead.”
Because they cannot destroy this initiative, the PPP is encouraging their supporters to boycott and picket the community outreaches instead of going in to get help and advice that they need. They are consciously depriving citizens of the assistance that they have a right to.
We will continue to take Government to the people anywhere and everywhere within our 83,000 square miles. So far, thousands of citizens have had their questions answered, their house lot applications addressed, and received information about what they could do to keep a neighbour from building his fence on their property. They learn about their NIS contributions, and what options are there for a wayward youth in their community.
Every complaint is heard and addressed, either on the spot or afterward when research is done. This is what the outreaches are for.

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