Dear Editor

That the world’s economy has come to a halt as a result of COVID – 10 was inevitable, for this is a pandemic, which deadly viral infection has been found to be transmitted from human to human. With its deadly consequences of tens of thousands dying across the world, as illustrated in those mostly affected countries, there is every justification that the measures of restriction of human activities, whether by partial curfew, total lockdowns, and social distancing, have been proven to be necessary; first, for mitigating the spread of the infection, and second, for reducing the  number of deaths through infection.

Editor, one must be reminded that although one lives in a highly automative world, that humans are still at the centre of its productive process, even in the highly technologically advanced regions of the world. The fact is that human activity is still indispensable in all of the world’s productive sectors that requires daily sustenance of mankind. Thus, there is no surprise, and should be no argument as to the grinding to a halt of the world’s productive sectors – It is the human hand which is at the centre of its direction. And COVID-19 has shown just how much humans are indispensable in every legitimate activity that has to do with daily living; but also, how instantly they become vulnerable to the shocks of such deadly ravages as a deadly viral.

With the reported millions on unemployment relief assistance in the United States for example, and in Great Britain, where the Conservative government has decided to give wages to state workers while they are at home, while also announcing ameliorative measures for the self-employed, there is no doubt that individual governments, apart from those stated packages , will also have to plan economies in a world where pandemics may become a daily feature of life.

In Guyana, the extant circumstances since the advent of COVID-19, with all its now known socio-economic fallout, has been no different. Daily economic activities have declined, and has had to be, because of the threat that the killer virus poses to all of us. There can be no criticisms levelled against the government and its executing arms for the measures taken at pre-empting a surge of infected persons. For every government has the right in situations where the public health is threatened, to invoke the use of the State’s Public Health Ordinance, for the greater good. It is an imperative, that even those who may have been tempted to criticize in the name of perceived threat to personal liberty – which it is not – will later be thankful that it has been done, when it was done.

But one must now turn to those at the lower end of the socio-economic scale who would have already started to feel the impact of the restrictive measures employed for protection of all of us from the killer virus.

It is both commendable and encouraging by the announcement, for Finance Minister Winston Jordan, announcement of government’s plan for a ‘’stimulus package for vulnerable after current ‘hurdle’. Particular mention has been made of the “self- employed, school vendors and itinerant vendors, among others”. Also, the many, which are dependent on these hardworking citizens for their survival, inclusive of the “shut ins’’.

Editor, these are citizens who are often looked down at, experiencing an amalgam of social sneers and slights. But, their services to the wider citizenry cannot be underestimated for the invaluable and often timely services, many times up to the door of customers, which they offer. And their dependents are many, with their being on the daily hard slog of selling goods, sometimes to an unappreciative public, determining a meal or not on the family table; or an unpaid Guyana Power & Light (GPL) bill.

It is hoped that those responsible for the compilation of the database, be able to have the bona fides, the people who richly deserve whatever assistance can be offered by the coalition government, which must be commended for its continuous programme of bringing much needed assistance to the people, at this most challenging time of the world’s history.

And as a reminder to the now national political mischief makers, and architects of misinformation and fake news – that the APNU+AFC is about the welfare of the Guyanese people; not the friend and crony category, known so well to the culture of PPP/C governance.

Regards
Earl Hamilton