Latest update March 29th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 20, 2015 Letters
Dear Editor,
The recent decision to increase the salaries for Government Ministers has drawn mostly criticisms from those who have opted to speak on the matter. Most of the criticisms so far have had no substantive justification, but instead are based on emotional and other factors that are completely irrelevant. I shall not go into these in this letter as those writers have already explained themselves. Instead, I hope to point out a few of the reasons why I think the salary increases were justified and were absolutely necessary at this stage, and I hope to provide readers with an alternative but objective view of this issue.
In modern free market societies such as ours in Guyana, employees in the private sector are paid salaries that 1) provide an incentive for them perform their duties to the best of their abilities, and 2) to keep those employees relatively happy and satisfied as this tends to make for more effective and efficient organizations. It is true that the private sector in many countries generally offers better compensation than the public sector, but it also true that in those countries, many department heads of Government agencies have moved to narrow those gaps so as to attract and retain competent skills. This is where we are in Guyana at the moment. The gap between private and public sector compensation levels must be narrowed if we are to attract and retain competent skills within the Government. We do not have the luxury of a large pool of financially well off politicians who can serve this country well without having to worry about their personal finances. Now, with better wages, we may soon attract better competencies into Government.
Some may argue that elected officials ought to expect lower salary scales as it was their choice to seek elected office to serve the country. That is generally true. However, while we may agree that government salaries may be lower than those of the private sector, we must also bear in mind that those salaries cannot be too low so as to make it impossible for those officials to provide an acceptable quality of life for their families. In many more developed societies, elected officials generally come from wealthy family backgrounds or have strong financial support before they enter into office. In these cases, they are able to maintain their qualities of life despite the lower salary structures. In Guyana, however, this is not the case. Our business leaders who have a strong financial base generally remain out of politics and most of our politicians rely on their salaries as the single source of income. If we expect those politicians to perform their duties well, then we must understand that they ought to be compensated to provide them an acceptable living standard.
The salary scales for other civil servants – teachers, law enforcement personnel, nurses etc., must also be revised upwards significantly. But this can only be done after we have adequate revenue stream to sustain it. And this can only happen if the Ministers and policy makers develop and implement sound policies that drive economic growth in this country. For this reason, it makes a lot of sense to start off by bringing the wages of these policy makers up to a level where they can focus on their jobs and are not distracted by personal financial stress.
Some have argued that this decision goes against the coalition’s campaign promises. I believe that the decision to bring the salaries of the executive branch to a respected level is in keeping with those promises. One of the main messages of the APNU/AFC campaign was anti-corruption. It was consistently pointed out by international groups, including the US-based Freedom House, that corruption had become pervasive under the PPP administration. Senior members of the PPP Government, as now uncovered by forensic audits, were apparently using every corrupt trick they could find to misdirect public funds. This practice hurts those who should have otherwise benefited from a strong treasury- the public servants. Corruption in any society becomes rampant and out of control when it comes from the top, as it apparently was with the PPP Government, and it can only be stopped from the top downwards – not the other way. For this reason, the decision by the Granger Government to raise salaries of the executive branch is a brilliant first step in the right direction, and should give hope to those who look forward to a less corrupt society.
We look to this new Government to implement good policies that will improve the lives of all Guyanese. We know that the Ministers and policymakers have to remain focused on many fronts while they try to develop sound strategic plans for the development of this country. They cannot afford to be distracted at this stage, and so we must compensate them adequately so that they can focus on the difficult tasks ahead. This salary increase should be viewed as a first step to bringing decency and respect in our society. It must be followed up at the appropriate time by a significant upward revision of compensation for all public servants.
Max Mohamed
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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