…and the Disciplined Services
Today, our Disciplined Forces go to the polls. We were informed that this year, there are 10,226 members eligible to vote. In the 2018 Local Government Elections – the last elections held – we were informed that 7918 members were eligible. So this means in the intervening less than a year and a half, the Disciplined Forces were increased by 2308!! That’s some heavy recruitment!! Unfortunately, there’s no breakdown in the numbers from the different Services this year to get an idea where the bulk of that 2308 members ended up.
But in 2018, according to the GECOM PRO, the Police contributed more than half of the 7918 with 4693 members, the GDF with 2773, and 451 Prison Officers. We’d always been told that the Police were never up to their authorised strength of 3500 – which rather confusingly in 2014 the official Guyana Police Force Report showed a roster of 3353 personnel. By 2018, they were way past this figure if GECOM numbers can be trusted. So they couldn’t have contributed to that increase of 2308, could they??
Well, maybe 700 at max, cause as of July 2018, according to the Government, 1608 persons had been recruited into the resuscitated Peoples Militia – interestingly, the most in the Regions, being from Reg 6!! But the LGE had been conducted in November, long after the peoples’ Militia figures had been announced.
So, was it that since they’re not in active service and were already in their homes and districts, they didn’t have to vote separately? And they’ve they been mobilised for elections duty this go-around on March 2, and as such have to vote along with the rest of the Disciplined Forces?? But with all the concerns raised about Security at the Places of Poll, shouldn’t the government have announced this deployment?? We hope the powers-that-be will clear up the discrepancy since it means for sure there’s no need for a “nightshift”!!!!
Because we tend to forget by looking at only the uniforms of the men and women in those forces their voting reminds us they’re just like the rest of us. They may be trained in particular skills to perform specific jobs – focused on protecting the country and the rest of us from external and internal threats – but they have fears and concerns like the rest of us.
And some of those fears and concerns also have to do with the political choices that face us as we make our choice as to which party will form the next government. It used to be that their votes were counted separately and announced…but no more.
It confirmed, however, that like the rest of their compatriots, they voted ethnically!!
…with their placards
The PNC Government’s gone on a full-court press to convince the nation that they fired the 7000 sugar workers by closing 4 estates, for “their own good”!! They had to be sacrificed for the survival of the still employed 10,000: Bentham’s utilitarian principle at work and all that!! But it doesn’t look like the “sacrifice” has benefitted those 10,000. First of all, sugar production keeps plummeting and yet the Government just keeps making unrealistic production projections, while holding wages stagnant!!
Unfortunately, the proof of the production is…erm…in the production!! And with this keep heading south, the remaining 10,000 are understandably sceptical of being around for the promised “turnaround”!! Their union has finally realised they must take some action against the Government and GuySuCo which just keeps saying “manana”!! So the workers at two of the estates are out on strike and have thrown the risible 5% wage “rise” back in management’s face!
Might as well, go down with some dignity!!
…and pumping oil
The environmentalist-who-is-in-charge-of-petroleum-production just announced that, for the entire 2020, Guyana will get 5M barrels of oil. Meaning at @US$55pb ,we’ll collect $275M.
He didn’t say how much the oil companies will get, thanks to the generosity (?) of Raphael Trotman!!
Nassau on my mind!!
