The Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) welcomes the members of the print and electronic media to its press conference
which is called to deal with a topic that is exceptionally serious and ought to be similarly important not only to every Guyanese but to every citizen on this planet earth and that is the COVID-19 pandemic and its devastating impact and deadly effects to humans.
Before I commence I would like to share with you the Union’s policy position in defense of press freedom. The GPSU would like all media personnel to be assured that the Guyana Public Service Union recognizes the necessity and importance of professional and credible media operations worldwide and its availability to the citizens keeping them informed factually and to enlighten and guide them with information and developments of interests.
This Union would, at all times, be in defense of press freedom for such institutions. Regrettably, however, the GPSU has been experiencing much difficulty in having its views carried by several media sources and would wish if this suppression of the Union’s views on matters be corrected. In 2021 on numerous occasions we have had this experience. One of the most worrying occasions was on International Nurses Day 2021 when we saluted our Nurses, expressing our respect and admiration and complemented them for their invaluable services during this deadly COVID environment. It is disheartening to us that not one media service on that day expressed those sentiments from the GPSU or any other source.
As President of the Guyana Public Service Union I spoke with the available heads of editorial of all the newspapers and wrote a letter to the editor of the printed media for publication this correspondence was not carried by any of the four national newspapers to which they were sent.
What one media house did was to print an edited version of my message as a letter to the Editor.
This Covid-19 Pandemic is devastating in the context of negatively disrupting economic progress, obstructing socializing, sporting, recreational, educational, vacations, the functioning of the judiciary and many other activities and interactions. It is also negatively impacting on the mental health capacity of many persons and has resulted in resistance to confinement instituted to impact the spread of the virus.
The prevailing pandemic environment is also being capitalized on as an obstacle to improving workers deserving conditions of service and remunerations
and has seriously contributed to increases in the cost of living.
Here in Guyana, this overwhelming infectious and deadly environment has been compounded with the obvious effects of climate change in the form of excessive rainfall and massive flooding and various forms of devastations to many communities. With respect to the virus, in the main we have had to adopt the practices and precautions implemented by the developed countries, obviously because of our scientific limitations. Similarly, in terms of treatment, we have had to await the advancement of scientific processes of the develop countries for the discovery of some laboratory development to contain the spread of this virus from engulfing the nation and hopefully eventually to achieve herd immunity, ideally, to the ultimate resistance to the spread and containment of COVID 19.
From the inception of our awareness of this pandemic the Guyana Public Service Union was extremely active in sensitizing its members about the seriousness of this development; enhancing its engagement with the administration for the protection and enlightenment of all frontline workers, making every effort to ensure their safety; being provided with PPEs and all other available means of protection so that they would be properly equipped to discharge their responsibilities in this campaign to reverse the devastation that was occurring by the pandemic.
Undoubtedly, a much more demanding contribution was required by these frontline workers who also had mental and economic consequences for them. Promises that were made and which created legitimate expectations of these most valuable resources to-date have not been fulfilled, but daily more demands are placed on them. As is easily recognizable, the infection rate and the death rate of COVID infected persons have constantly been increasing notwithstanding the administering or the inoculation of persons with vaccines that have been acquired. There is evidence that even persons who were administered both doses of those vaccines, that required you to have two doses subsequently contracted COVID 19 several of them died.
The Guyana Public Service Union had communicated to the Government of Guyana through Prime Minister Mark Phillips who is the Head of the COVID task force that since the escalation was ongoing that there was need for stricter measures and even suggested resuming the rotation and reviewing the curfew hours as aspects that could be considered warranted in implementing stricter measures.
The GPSU received from the Prime Minister an acknowledgement of its correspondence but no mention was made of the concerns expressed by the Union. The GPSU dispatched a second correspondence to the Prime Minister as a form of a reminder reiterating its concerns and urging that the Government approach be revisited. In response to the GPSU the Prime Minister requested that the Union encourage all public servants to take the vaccine at the earliest opportunity and again there was no mention about the additional restrictive measures referred to by the Union. However, there was an article in the Guyana Chronicle on the 22nd May, 2021 with the heading “No lockdown” and in the commencing statement “take the vaccine now or risk having to pay later” which the Union interrupted as a subtle form of response to the genuine and sincere concerns expressed about the safety of the Guyanese citizenry.
We found the comments repulsive, irresponsible and an obvious absence of recognition of the Constitutional Rights of every citizen to be privileged to have equal treatment in the utilization of public funds.
Instructions were given to relevant union membership and personnel to compile and bring up to date certain data with respect to the impact of the COVID 19 in Guyana. This being done and taking into consideration other developments the Union decided to issue a press statement on this matter and to respond directly to the Prime Minister’s letter. The press statement was circulated and I would just merely mention three aspects of it:
- Guyana now holds a seat at the executive board at the World Health Organization (WHO), this Executive Board comprise of 34 persons of which six seats are allocated to the Americas which includes Guyana and the Guyana representative on that board is the current Minister of Health, Dr. Frank Anthony, M.P.
- That Guyana Public Service Union fully supports the procurement and distribution of WHO’s approved vaccines to the Guyanese public.
- The GPSU supports the individual rights of Guyanese citizens to refuse medical treatment, including vaccines after making informed decisions.
A reply was also sent to the Prime Minister, expressing similar sentiments.
The GPSU would continue to motivate its members in this current deadly and depressed environment to be professional, efficient and effective in discharging their responsibilities and at the same time to be careful with whatever they are required to do and ensure their safety, to avoid all risk and protect their health regardless.
June 24, 2021