| A change has got to come |
| Saturday, 27 February 2010 | |
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Editorial: (Kaieteur News) Everyone talks about the need for a change among the people of Guyana; a change in thought, a change in attitude and even a change in perception. The world is changing at an alarming rate and people must change with it. Gone are the days when people smoked in any area, be it confined or open. It did take some time but Guyanese no longer smoke in cars and other forms of public transport. Motorists use seatbelts, something that was anathema not so long ago. In fact, buckling up is now as natural as turning the key in the ignition. There are other changes, some of which appear for the worse. These days, people can walk past each other without so much as a greeting or a nod. It is as if each is in a world of his own. This is rather unusual in our corner of the world where children grew up calling each adult uncle and aunty. No child dared walk past an adult without issuing a greeting for fear of physical punishment.Children use the most foul language in the presence of adults and there is no repercussion because society has changed; parents no longer upbraid their children for wrongdoings and even support them. It is this attitude that has led to the breakdown in society. For example, the adage that cleanliness is next to godliness no longer holds true. How else could one explain the huge garbage piles along the roadways used for the Mashramani Costume and Float Parade? In other societies people going on picnics would walk with garbage bags for their waste. By the time they leave the picnic area it is spotless. This came about because of the penalties for littering. Guyana talks about penalizing people for littering but this seems more talk than action. The tonnes of plastic bottles, Styrofoam boxes and other containers literally covered the roadway to such an extent that it took the municipal workers three days to clear one area. We have heard people in their ignorance proclaim that if they do not litter then someone would be out of a job, that they are providing jobs for the municipal workers. That is as wise as the man who torches his house to provide a job for the Guyana Fire Service. We talk about attracting tourists and the like but when the tourists come and they see a total disregard for cleanliness then one wonders whether they would find any interest in coming again. Indeed, the Mash spectacle was great; there was entertainment galore, enough to attract any tourist or visitor. But the mess that was left behind negated all the good. And it was not that there were no garbage bins along the route. It was just that people are still set in their ways and something drastic will have to be done if there is to be a change. In the same way that the government is descending on structures constructed on government reserves. This construction on the reserves was allowed to continue unabated until it became chronic. When the government decided to act people protested as though they were the victims of an injustice. As fate would have it the rest of the society refused to listen to these people who claimed that they were wronged. Similar action must be taken against the litterers. Not only must they be made to pay but they must also be made to clean up so that they could appreciate the mess they make and the pressures they put on others. What may not be readily acknowledged is that once there is a change in attitude for the better so many other things fall into place. Perhaps most of Guyana’s ills are due to the attitude of the people and surely, things can only get worse. |
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