Dear Editor,

President Granger and his government promised “a better life for all Guyanese.” Is this really true? According to Minister Harmon, in an article in Stabroek News on October 7th, “we have to pay people well if we want them to perform.” If this is what he believes, how come poor people/ordinary citizens are forced to accept low salaries/wages?

People have been working as public servants for years but got very meagre increases in salaries and wages. This government is in office for merely five months but already they are giving themselves huge increases.

We found Mr Harmon’s statement that his cabinet has “quality” people as his justification for their voluptuous salaries insulting to the rest of us (we use the word ‘voluptuous’ deliberately.) We ordinary citizens are responsible for the government being in office. If it wasn’t for us, the presumably ‘no quality’ people, the “quality” people would not have been in the positions they now hold. When they wanted our votes they were not so high and mighty, but now the Minister of State has the gall to say he has no apologies to make about them getting that increase. Well, he should apologise to the people who put them all in office, since they are forcing us to live on starvation wages.

Minister Harmon further justifies his government’s position as it relates to the increase, that they have to be paid well so that they wouldn’t ‘thief’ like the former officials. It would seem that Mr Harmon and his cabinet members lack integrity. We find his justification very disturbing.

If they can’t survive on over $500,000 per month why do they expect other people to live on $6,500, $17,000 and $50,000 per month? These categories of people don’t get duty free concessions and all the other perks the government officials are entitled to.

If they were earning more in their other jobs, why didn’t they stick to those jobs and give others a chance to fill the government positions? We never asked them to sacrifice their high-paying jobs at the expense of us, the grassroots, being trampled upon. Yes, this is what we feel, trampled upon. This just goes to show where their true interest is. They are not sufficiently better than the ones they replaced.

Yours faithfully, Joy Marcus Halima Khan Wintress White  Joycelyn Bacchus For Red Thread