Salary increases “too early” – Dr David Hinds

Dr David Hinds

… says Govt “misread” even supporters’ feelings

By Michael Younge

Political scientist Dr David Hinds said the new A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) coalition Government’s decision to increase the salaries of its Ministers and all parliamentarians came too early in its tenure as he criticised the manner in which it was done.

Dr Hinds, an outspoken supporter of the Government, speaking with the Guyana Times during an interview on Thursday, said that the new Government must have known that the subject matter of increasing the salaries of Ministers and executives is always unpopular.

“Coming so soon after the election when memories are still fresh, it is bound to excite negative responses. The increases should not have been pursued this early,” he said.

Hinds argued that the new Government appeared to be misreading the mood of the Guyanese people and their intolerance for continued injustice.

“So, I am not surprised that the Government has come under fire for this move. For me, the issue is not whether the salaries should be increased or not, or the fact that the rate of increase is higher than that of public servants; I suppose one can make a case for both. But I am concerned about the optics of it. Often, it is not just what Government does, but the manner in which things are done. My test is not the protest of the Opposition party: that protest is mostly grounded in the need to embarrass the Government for doing what the now Opposition did when in Government just a few months ago,” he insisted.

He said his test was the protest of Government supporters or those not deemed to be hostile to the Government, as he argued that many of them were not happy about this move and were voicing their disapproval.

“Others, I am sure, are shaking their heads in dismay. That should send a message to the Government to “watch what you doing”. Governments should always tread carefully on sensitive matters. And this is a sensitive matter. The issue of Government as a source of enrichment for Ministers was a very big reason for the widespread discontent with the previous Government. The then Opposition benefited from this sentiment. Although the salary increase is not a form of enrichment, it should not be surprising that many see it in that light,” Dr Hinds explained.

He said if it was the case that the new Government had to do it, it should have done so in small increments.

“I think the Government has misread the feelings of its own supporters on this score. I have said before that one of the weaknesses of this government is its inability to ground more with the masses. If it were doing this, it would have known that this move would not find favour with them,” he posited.

Asked whether the move to increase the salaries of the Ministers would impact the support that the new Government enjoyed, considering how Guyanese have rejected similar acts of the PPP while in office, Dr Hinds, who is also an Executive Member of the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) Party, maintained that this may not necessarily be the case.

Questioned whether he was disappointed that much of the focus of the new Government has been on salaries, vehicles, renovating the Prime Minister (PM) offices and residences as opposed to other important matters, Dr Hinds said any new government coming into office after the previous Government has been in office for so long has to by necessity deal with the issues the Government has been paying attention to.

“It is not a case of picking and choosing what to deal with – all matters that have to do with the process of governance are important. But yes, moving the country beyond where you met it – economically, politically – should be paramount. But this should not be at the expense of unearthing and correcting the wrongs of the past,” he related.

Like Dr Hinds, many stakeholders in society have expressed outrage at the Government’s decision to hike the pay of Ministers who have been in office for just four months.

Several entities including the Guyana Teachers Union, have criticised the move but the core union, the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) remains mum and totally silent on the matter even though its public servants, many of whom are poor, have only been given a five per cent increase.

GPSU President Patrick Yarde, known for his boisterous positions on these matters, could not be reached for a comment despite the fact that this newspaper tried for hours to reach him on Thursday.

The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has already called on the Government to retract its position while upbraiding Minister of State Joseph Harmon who said that the move was justified and the new Ministers deserved the pay hike despite the fact that Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo and President David Granger have always spoken out about leading a Cadillac lifestyle in a donkey cart economy.