ROMAIN KHAN
OUR nation suffered a great loss and shock at the passing of Minister within the Ministry of Education, Dr Desrey Fox, after her fatal vehicular accident on December 11, 2009.

No doubt, Dr. Desrey Fox contributed a tremendous amount of work in the molding and development of the Education sector, especially at the University of Guyana.

It is only fair to Dr. Desrey Fox that the people of this nation be apprised of some great pretenders existing within the University of Guyana Council who spoke engaging words at her funeral service. Some of these same pretenders repudiated Dr. Fox’s contract and forfeited all benefits accrued to her, stating that she failed to apply for leave of absence. Dr. Fox appealed to the University of Guyana Council to reverse this decision. The Council then directed the Administration to reinstate Dr. Fox with immediate effect without any break in her service.

Previous Deputy Vice-Chancellor Al Creighton now Dean of the Education and Humanities Faculty of the University of Guyana, had highlighted the work of Fox at the university. “She was very immersed in the activities of UG life.” He went on to state that she joined the university in 1977 as an assistant in the language project that was to later become the Amerindian Research Unit within the Faculty of Arts to her revision and compilation of the Introduction to Amerindian Studies (AST 111). He continued to talk about membership in the university’s choir; and that Fox was active both on stage and in the collection of material gathered in the field.”

The public should know that Dr. Fox was a focal person in terms of making sterling contribution to Guyana’s development, particularly in the area of Amerindian research. It should be noted that the high standards that Dr. Fox had set at Amerindian Research Unit at the University of Guyana has been sadly diminished under the watch of the new incumbent; and Amerindian research is no longer of the same caliber as before.