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        All Saints West Community Website

 

    August 24, 2009

 

            The need for proper representation

 

I have always expressed my opinion that the citizens of Antigua and Barbuda cannot get proper representation with our present political system, where a person who is elected to represent a constituency is allowed to represent a political party in the same parliament at the same time.

   One example of a situation where no one is looking out for the peoples interest is the area of education. Before the education levy was introduced, parents would purchase their own text books which would belong to them. The government of the day said that it realized that some parents found it difficult to find the money to purchase text books so they introduced a levy on all income so that the rich would assist the poor.

   They made it clear that this was not a revenue measure. They said it was to assist parents to purchase text books. Therefore it is both illegal and immoral to use the money for any other purpose. Not only did the government use the money for purposes other than the purchase of text books, they lent the books to the children and told them that if they lost or damaged the books they would have to pay for them.

   The question is how can you lend someone something that that person has bought? the people’s money bought the books therefore the books should be given to their children. It is wickedness of the highest order to lend the text books to the children.

At this present time many children do not have text books: some because the government has used the people’s money for purposes other than the purchase of text books and some because the children failed to return the book or books from the last class.

   Every one knows that books are made from paper not leather. Therefore it is unreasonable to expect one book to last from generation to generation.

  The government is denying many of our children the opportunity to get a good education, and not one of those elected to represent the people is doing anything about it. In addition to that there is a shortage of chairs and desks in some schools. We need proper representation.

                                               Rupert E. Henry

                                                                                                                                                               

Sponsored by Rupert E. Henry