THE EDITOR:
This is an open letter to the Ministry of Education, the Primary Presbyterian School’s Board of Education and the current administration at Grant Memorial Presbyterian School.

Quite a few parents and myself have tried to communicate our discontent with the additional teaching or “lessons” that continue after the hour of three at the aforementioned school.

Not all parents are able to pay the exorbitant fees for these “lessons” which by the way is not only unethical but immoral.

Many teachers at this school are charging in excess of $90 a week for “lessons”.

After much communication with teachers of the school, we were amazed to learn that some teachers make almost $6,000 monthly with “lessons”.

This by the way is additional tax free money, so BIR please take note.

Also unacceptable is the level at which “lessons” begins at the school.

As early as standard two and standard three with fees ranging from $100 to $150 a month.

As far as we know, the Ministry of Education pays its teachers their just dues every month to do what they have to from 8.30 a.m. to 3 p.m.

But not at Grant Memorial Presbyterian School.

Here school dismisses for some classes at 4.30 p.m. or as late as 5 p.m.

What is equally disheartening, is that children whose parents cannot afford these “lessons” are often short-changed on the work that is supposed to be done in the time it is supposed to be done.

Teachers who are doing these “lessons” are of the opinion that children need extra classes to learn what is to be learnt from the Ministry’s syllabuses.

If that is the case then someone needs to explain to me why every primary school, including all the other prestige schools are not allowing this practice.

We, a concerned group at the school, have notified the Ministry of our outrage, but have gotten absolutely no response.

Maybe, the Honourable Minister, Mrs. Hazel Manning can shed some light on this matter.

Mrs Manning, we implore you to please put a stop to this “business” of “lessons” at the school and at all other schools it is allowed.

Some years ago, the topic of “lessons” was a notable and popular debate.

Today, things seem out of control.

The only “lessons” should be the ones taught in the classroom within regular school hours.

Even though many gullible and irresponsible parents continue to support this idea, a much larger group is equally opposed to it.

If any official body wishes to challenge any of the contents of this letter, feel free to investigate the matter first hand.

It will find that all is true.

DEAR EDITOR:
Is new UNC leader Winston Dookeran really a man of

integrity as NACTA has been promoting him in poll after poll?

And is he really an asset that will take the Opposition to victory as some commentators and letter writers believe?

Let us look at his checkered political career and election results for a guide to the answer to these two questions.

Dookeran started his political career in 1981 with Basdeo Panday through the introduction by former Oropouche MP Trevor Sudama while they were lecturers at UWI.

When Panday, Sudama, Ramnath and others were unjustly expelled from the NAR, Dookeran did not take a principled position condemning Robinson’s high handed actions.

Instead, he sided with Prime Minister Ray Robinson to booth out Panday and others from government.

Dookeran said publicly that he wanted to remain a minister and did not want to return being an Opposition MP.

Panday called him a maha-neemakharam who was interested in the trappings of office.

And Sudama did not have nice words for him either calling on Dookeran to resign as Planning Minister.

At no time did Dookeran make an effort to heal the conflict within the NAR.

Instead, he saw himself as the replacement of Panday as Robinson’s new deputy and Acting Prime Minister, a task he fulfilled several times.

While remaining Minister, he did nothing for UNC supporters.

His position against Panday and others lacked principle and integrity and smacked of opportunism.

When conflict developed in the UNC government between Panday and his deputy Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj in 2001, Dookeran made no effort to mediate the differences or to bring healing to keep the UNC in government.

He was only concerned about the perks of remaining governor of the Central Bank.

While in private, he said Panday was wrong to dismiss Ramesh, Sudama, and Maraj from the cabinet, in public he was quiet.

After the tied election of December 2001 when Panday was deposed as Prime Minister by President Robinson, there was an agreement between Dookeran and Ramesh not to join the UNC unless Panday agreed to purge the party and unite the opposition.

But Dookeran broke the agreement.

The NACTA poll, which has been promoting Dookeran, found that the UNC would win the election if were united.

With a promise from the parasitic oligarchy that he would succeed Panday as the leader of the UNC, Dookeran abandoned Ramesh and a chance of being in government by accepting the parasitic oligarchy’s proposal that Ramesh should be left out as a candidate to contest the October 2002 general elections.

Dookeran’s thinking was clear -- if Ramesh returns to the UNC, he (Dookeran) would not be able to succeed Panday.

Dookeran contested the safe St. Augustine seat and the rest is now history.

The election results show that with Dookeran the UNC lost votes in St. Augustine as well as throughout the country -- 20,000 votes.

The party also lost 2 seats.

If Dookeran had insisted that Ramesh be returned as a candidate and that the party be reformed, the UNC would have won 2002 general elections.

The party only lost the elections by 550 votes.

Dookeran abandoned principle and trust to promote himself.

He cannot be trusted to honour an agreement.

How can I trust a man who broke agreements during critical times in the nation’s history.

He cannot be trusted to honour an agreement.

Let me also note that the UNC lost 13 local government seats since Dookeran joined the UNC and the Opposition took a severe beating in Tobago.

So he has not proven to be an asset in elections.

On another note, while the majority of the population as well as the UNC MPs are against the proposed Police Reform and CCJ bills in their present form, Dookeran is in favour of them.

If he becomes Leader of the Opposition, he will act against the interests of UNC supporters and the population at large.

Frankly, Dookeran’s leadership will be a disaster for TnT.

I cannot support Dookeran.

THE EDITOR:
Anyone outside of TnT reading the daily reports in the print media on the ongoing crime caucus between the ruling administration and the Opposition could be forgiven for wondering just what war were being waged. 

It is to be hoped that at the end of the day the Opposition are not to be portrayed as having capitulated in this war, thereby being labelled as the causative factor. 

The majority seem to have lost sight of the fact that the war is actually one between those in power, so far powerless to stem the rising bloodshed, destruction and fear perpetrated by the criminals, with the helpless citizens (which includes the Opposition) the victims of both.

 One editorial after Mr. Bakr’s arrest and the Police swoop on the Jamaat headquarters asserts that if “the love affair or working relationship” between the Jamaat and the present administration “has gone wrong, it can only be a positive development for TnT”. 

That a member of the Fourth Estate could make such a statement without enunciating that there is urgent need not only to question why PM Manning sees no sense in pursuing an investigation into the events of the 1990 coup but also why he has studiously ignored numerous complaints of intimidation by robed individuals, who could only be from the self same association in the election of October 2 in which he was, according to him, “vindicated” is a sad indictment of our nation’s lack of comprehension, particularly since Abu Bakr also claims to have won that election for him.   

If we truly desire a return to stability and lessening of crime, these two sore matters must not continue to be ignored.  

It is now the more imperative that investigation be carried out into both of them.  

The Muslimeen has already been fully compensated by this administration for damages incurred to their property during the insurrection (and almost got the adjoining land too!) while the nation still patiently awaits payment for the destruction wrought by them -- not to mention the fact that no one has paid for taking the life of a government minister, amongst others. 

 “Transparency” was Mr. Manning’s buzz word on being selected by Mr. Robinson and we would ask that he please demonstrate said transparency on at least this occasion.  These are matters which have, and continue, to bedevil our society, impacting on each and every citizen

THE EDITOR:
History, whether of countries or religions, are written by the victorious ones.

We here in the English Caribbean were taught history from an English point of view, their people were the heroes and the things they did were always right, that’s why there are so many streets in Woodbrook named after English generals.

Religious history is written from the point of view of Christians and depending on  the dominant sect then their actions were right, however, are these respective view points the absolute truth, many times we find out that what we were given as truth have been fabrications.

 In the past before the advent of the Internet we had to accept what we were told however, now the onion is finally being peeled and curious seekers can finally discover truth from fiction, another place to get the facts so far is the History Channel, although it is a US of A channel, I wonder if this is the reason that the US of A wants to control the Internet, as its unsavory past is being stripped away.

 At one time if one spoke the truth against either one’s country or religion one was either killed or imprisoned or made into a pariah, but has that really stopped, if we follow the news we find that is not so, however, there are more fearless people now and some legal people are not allowing country or religion to control.

A mind is a terrible thing to waste and one must not be afraid to question.