IN his book, The West on Trial, Cheddi Jagan writes about a dispute he had with the Dental Association of Guyana, on the question of fee-fixing. He was charging one dollar, for an extraction, when the minimum fee was set at two dollars.
He argued that the Association should have been regulating standards, not setting fees. And he continued charging one dollar, because he “could not see why it was necessary to earn in few minutes, what it took poor people half a day or a whole day to earn, when they were fortunate enough to find employment.” Such magnanimity is rarely heard of. It is the gift of the Mahatma.

I vividly remember a visit I made to his office in the early 70s, when I was a young undergraduate  at the University of Guyana.

Dr Jagan did a filling on a decaying tooth, and some other restorative work. He was kind, gentle, caring and professional. He was so warm, I felt as if I were in the presence of my father.

He had half (maybe less) of a tooth to work with/on, he pointed out. He assured me that he would do his best. Today, more than two and half decades later, the tooth he had restored is still firm and functional.

I recall going to his secretary to pay for the service rendered. I told her that I probably misheard the sum of money Dr Jagan had told me to pay, and assured her that I did not intend to mislead her. She looked at me, smiled and assured me that I was not mistaken. “He fees are always low,” she affirmed.

About two years ago, I called my dentist’s office in Toronto to find out whether the practitioner would make some adjustment to the fees he had quoted to put a shell on the tooth in question. He replied through his secretary that he was not willing to either minimize or compromise his standards! (It was only then that I realized why I see so many people with missing teeth, in Toronto. It is not for a lack of pride, but a lack of money).

Anyway, I did not procure the services of the dentist. I am sure I will take this tooth with me to Babu John, wherever mine is. Thanks, Dr Jagan. And a million thanks for everything else you have done for me, my fellow countrymen, my country and the world.