INCIVILITY refers to our lack of civil behaviour – our general lack of good manners – of professionalism at work and a seeming lack of awareness that this poses any kind of problem for anyone. What has happened to values – teaching? Why are values disappearing from our offices? Is it that they are disappearing from our schools as well? Why is punctuality no longer important? Why are apologies for mistakes no longer current practice? Why are basic good manners no longer required? Why is our tone when speaking to the customer or visitor so gross? So rude? Why are some of us chewing gum all day, everyday, even while speaking to the visitor/customer?

So often our junior officers are openly rude when responding to, or even discussing, with their seniors? Who is helping them or teaching them to do what is right? What is the role of the supervisor? Does he/she really notice? Can she/he really help?
Why is our dress for work so often inappropriate with no distinction made between family fun-day and the office or the night club wear and the office? Why do our female folks expose for sale, no doubt, so much of their breasts and legs during the work day? Why is dress for Sunday worship and communion in some churches so grossly inappropriate? Are these female folks trying to entice the priests? Or do they genuinely not know any better?

Why are supervisors allowing in offices, especially on Fridays, T-shirts with inappropriate slogans? The other day, very recently, an employee was seen leaving an office one Friday afternoon wearing a T-shirt that said:
“If you do not like my attitude, then do not speak to me”.

How is that for image-building? Why are some persons allowed to wear caps in offices as they go about their daily tasks? Why some are allowed to wear caps at executive meetings and are filmed by our media houses? These photographs are later shown to the nation’s viewers.

Guyana, we are in the midst of a very serious Etiquette crisis – an incivility crisis which is doing great harm to our country’s image.
The attention of those of us who know better is needed not only for the necessary work on domestic violence, street children, security or wanton disposal of garbage, but also for campaigns for the restoration of values in homes and at our places of work and worship.