–to help make NTFC’s work easier

THE National Task Force Commission (NTFC) is blaming the ministries and other public agencies for its inability to produce enough data on certain issues.

“If we ask certain agencies how many persons are unemployed, how many are homeless, how many are single parents, they don’t have the information to share,” Task Force Chairman, Major General (ret’d) Joseph Singh told a press conference at the Ministry of Public Infrastructure on Friday.

Given that the Commission is tasked with creating solutions to pertinent issues affecting society, access to information is critical to their work, which makes not being able to do so a major challenge.

Singh couldn’t help but wonder aloud whether the Ministry of Public Health could provide the Task Force with information on how many people suffer from certain diseases; or for that matter, whether the other ministries would be able to provide them with vital information should they need it.

But thankfully, he said, there are other institutions like the University of Guyana (UG) to turn to, should the need arise, as they, too, have a vital role to play in the collection and management of data.

The Task Force Chairman feels the University can go one step further and instill in students, in theory and practice, the importance of data collection.

The need for training to share information, he said, has to be taught at an elementary level because, even places like Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) and other local government bodies have been found on occasions to withhold information.

Noting that this reluctance to divulge information can cause persons to become reactionary, Singh said, a case in point was the recent flooding in the Hinterland.

What many did not know at the time, he said, was that it was the overtopping of the Ireng and Takutu Rivers, in the first place, that caused the floods, which in turn led to the destruction of farms, cattle and even households.

“Persons did not even know what was going on all along until it was explained to them,” Mr Singh said, adding that up until then, people in the affected areas were unaware that what they were experiencing was essentially a manifestation of the negative impacts of climate change.

This being the case, he said, it is now more important than ever to have a collective approach to dealing with issues affecting the country.

The sharing of information, he said, will be so much easier if only persons can “change their attitudes” and get over their “this-is-my-turf” mindset. And the one sure-fire way to go, he said, is to have integrated planning.