The Invite

Oct 05, 2023 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

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Kaieteur News – A consultation was held between the President of Guyana and some teachers. The representative union of teachers were informed of the event and simply told that it was most welcome to attend.

Telling the union that it was most welcome to attend was not a formal invite. It was akin to someone telling you that they have a party and if you want you can come. That hardly can count as an invitation.

The consultation was not a problem in itself. The government may have been treating those that attended as part of a large focus group in order to gain their insights into the development of the education sector. Focus groups are a legitimate and acceptable method for obtaining qualitative data. A focus group is a qualitative research method commonly used in social sciences. It involves a small group of participants brought together to discuss and provide feedback on a specific topic. The focus group is to used gather insights, opinions, and perceptions from participants in a structured, interactive discussion.

Focus groups are valuable for several reasons: They provide in-depth qualitative data that can uncover participants’ attitudes, beliefs, and motivations. Such groups allow researchers to explore the “why” behind participants’ opinions and behaviors. Focus groups, as a research method, are a relatively quick and inexpensive method of obtaining qualitative data.

The International Labour Organization did a survey on the effects of the closure of the sugar estates on workers and their families. This survey utilized focus groups. Where things went awry was when matters touching on teachers’ benefits were broached. This meant that the subject matter of the consultations touched on issues which have to be negotiated with the teachers’ union. The President was free to decide that he wanted consultations directly with teachers before engaging with their unions. If there was any mistake made was that this was not made clearer, that is the fact that he will engage the union at a subsequent date.

Irfaan Ali is a young man but he has to be careful that he does not fall victim to Jagdeo’s style of politics. He will find that unless he distances himself the politics of Jagdeo, he will end up attracting more controversy than the one highlighted in yesterday’s Stabroek News editorial.

In that editorial, the Stabroek News (SN) excoriated the President and the First Lady for hosting a breakfast for the Guyana Amazon Warriors team and not including the other finalist. They may have been too premature in its conclusions. It should have taken the time to get all the facts before rushing to judgment. It does not know, for example, whether the Trinibago Knight Riders were actually invited and whether they declined. Some teams would decline because they do not want such an activity to break their focus and concentration.

But if they were not invited, then this would constitute a faux pass on the part of the government. By convention (not protocol) both of the finalists ought to have been on the invite list. But until we know for sure that no invitation was extended to the opposing team, it is premature to say they were not invited. SN was also speculative in presuming that the possible breakfast non-invite may have been responsible for the Trinidadians taking off their medals immediately upon receiving them. This act by the players does not appear to be part of any protest. The players were simply disappointed with losing the finals and thus took off their medals. If anything it shows that they were saying that winning was important to them. It was equally premature for SN to indicate that the breakfast non-invite could harm Guyana’s chances of hosting matches in next year’s ICC Cricket World Cup. This is pure speculation, and rank at that.  But Guyana needs to take seriously the need to ensure that it fixes the thorny issues of parking and the traffic gridlock along the East Bank corridor, if the country is to have any chance of hosting the latter rounds of matches in the tournament.

Guyana has been found wanting during the CPL in terms of arrangements. It cannot afford to do the same and expect to host matches. At the same time, the sort of requirements, demanded by the ICC, about advertising near to and outside the stadium, cannot this time be condoned.  In 2007 billboards had to be pulled down. That demand should not be entertained this time around. They intrude on our sovereign rights.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions and beliefs of this newspaper and its affiliates.)

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• Guyana, Peeping Tom, President, representative, Union

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