Letter: Stop the attempts to cover up the truth

As a housewife I know that there are two ways of keeping one's house clean.

One is to dust up and the other is to cover up, which leads me to today's Guardian editorial, the title of which is "Dust UP"concerning the recently revealed so carefully guarded bursaries, grants, scholarships or gifts - call it what you will - handed out by the Ministry of Culture, not Education, mark you!

Read the editorial: Transparency needed in all state spending

Some of these are still so secret that not even the recipients are aware of them!!

Despite that latter piece of damning evidence alone one can be forgiven for gaining the impression that despite being privy to that self same information, the editorialist in question is trying to safeguard the relevant Minister or Ministry and trying to convince the populace that they are being altogether too inquisitive about where their hard earned tax dollars are going, instead of taxing the PNM administration as to why, once again, we have to have unsavoury information emerging out of any enquiry into their conduct of OUR business!

Said editorialist even, deliberately or otherwise, spewed incorrect information to the public, to wit stating that the incumbent Minister had withheld the information until threatened with court action, when in fact said information was not forthcoming until court action had indeed been taken (at what cost, and to whom but the taxpayer, of course!).

There again the editorialist should have been questioning government motive.

As for the admonition about incessantly barking "watchdogs", one can only laugh at that.

Any reasonably intelligent human being living amongst a den of thieves would know that the dog is not the one to watch, but whomsoever or whatsoever is causing it to bark.

Get real you guardians of the peoples rights.

It is your job to bark even louder to alert any somnolent citizens. That is why you are called the Fourth Estate.

In fact, it is your job to investigate and expose, not cover up or trivialise. You should now be screaming "what was all the secrecy about?" and "where de money gone?" - as does our leader - and demanding answers, and resignations.

Please do not castigate, put down or trivialise anyone for doing their part to attain (as opposed to maintain) integrity.

Our opposition, and the general public even, are having to work even harder now than ever before in this regard whilst our PM has stated that in an unacknowledged economic downturn he has to work even harder so cannot take a cut in salary (or perks, amongst which is a $13m pa entertainment allowance)!

With what is coming out of the Uff Commission of Enquiry alone I cannot give him credit for a job well done.

Hosting two exorbitantly expensive Summits in one year and our Carnival mentality are our sole claims to fame right now.

I, therefore, hope to hear a lot more barking on this issue. It is another disgrace and I personally am tired of the whole world laughing at my mother country.

The stick that will break the camel's back though is the new property tax.

Virginia Verity | via email