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Govt throws schoolgirl out of Mash competition over calypso critical of 6.5% pay hike
– Education Ministry says lyrics inappropriate
Ezeka Minty singing her Calypso at the Region Six Mash Competition Held on February 2.
Kaieteur News – A six-year-old student from the Fort Ordinance Primary School in Berbice , Ezeka Minty was disqualified from National Children’s Mash Competition, for a Calypso she sang criticising the Government’s 6.5 percent pay increase.
Minty’s song was called “Tell me how a guh survive with six point five”. The opening verse goes like this: “Tell me how a guh survive with 6.5, please tell me how a guh survive with 6.5.
I have a burning issue on my chest, ah can’t even rest, how cost of living and everything doubling, this thing troubling, how a must carry on with a seemingly one arm. Tell me how a guh survive with 6.5”.
Following her disqualification from the competition, the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) accused the government of being vindictive because the Minty’s song criticized its 6.5 percent pay increase for public servants. “Imagine our caring Ministry of Education disenfranchised this Little Angel from competing at the National Competition because they deemed this song to be POLITICAL. Imagine all the work that had to be put in by the teachers, parents, and child to master this song”, the GTU stated on its Facebook page. The Ministry of Education in response said that the song was not appropriate for the child’s age and breached one of the rules of the competition. “The Allied Arts Unit emphasises that decisions made are based on established rules that have been in place for many years, specifically focusing on the appropriateness of items in relation to age groups”, the unit said. “Two items were rejected,” the united added, stating that “the respective schools were duly advised with transparent communication on the reasons behind the decisions.” “The focus is on ensuring that the content presented aligns with the age appropriateness stipulated by the rules set well in advance of the competition,” the unit continued.
“It is crucial to highlight that the intention is not to censor satirical content but to maintain age-appropriate standards and teaching commences with rules in line with the longstanding principles upheld by individuals associated with the competition,” the unit which under the control of the Ministry of Education said. The GTU General Secretary, Coretta McDonald during protest actions on Wednesday condemned the move by the government. “Where were the rules all the time?” McDonald said while adding, “the government is proud about its 6.5 so why can’t our children sing about the 6.5?”
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