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Manipulating promotions
It is strange that at a time of such high crime and corruption we have no substantive DPP, Police Commissioner, Solicitor General, Chief Parliamentary Counsel and Integrity Commission. These offices all have an important role in ensuring that the rule of law prevails. Is this by design or sheer coincidence?
At present, no permanent appointments have been made to these key offices in the state and this must be a cause for concern. In some cases, we know that the Prime Minister exercised his veto but in the others, we have no explanation as to why these offices have not been filled.
Temporary acting appointments have the potential to compromise the independence of these offices. The appointee is in a delicate and vulnerable position. No bank will give a loan on the basis of a temporary appointment, the holder cannot properly personal life beyond the expiry date of his/her acting appointment, persons in contention for the position might try and undermine your chances, you worry about being set up by being appointed to act (because you are the natural, but unwanted successor) so that an adverse staff report will be done on your acting duty to destroy your chances when interviews are conducted for the ‘real’ promotion, and every sensitive matter that comes before you with political implications is a ‘test’ to see how receptive you may be to political influence.
Acting appointments have traditionally been used as a tool to manipulate the public service. People have been known to be left languishing, acting for many years, only to see their juniors leapfrog ahead of them when the Commission mysteriously and suddenly decides to fill the post. In the case of prison officer Dougnath Rajkumar, the Privy Council was astonished to note that he had been acting for 14 years! In another case I did, the officer remarked that the Commission appointed him to act for two years but refused to fill the vacancy as the Head of Department refused to make such a recommendation until his girlfriend’s brother completed a course and then recommended that interviews be held. Guess who scored higher at the interview?
Interviews & the Police
Interviews are a powerful weapon for manipulation. Examinations are objective. You are marked by reference to set criteria. The marker should not know the name of the candidate whose paper he is marking so there is little room for discrimination. Interviews, on the other hand, are personal. They see you. It is subjective. If they want to discriminate, they can. There is no right or wrong answer. You are at their mercy.
In the police service, for example, promotion is now done based on examination and interviews but many officers have complained that the interviews are being used as a ploy to increase the overall marks of ‘duncey-head’ officers who are favoured for promotion because of reasons extrinsic to merit and ability. There is the perception that interviews are being held to correct any imbalances that result from the objectively assessed theoretical promotion examinations.
I had refused to believe this until recently, when I realized that the Police Commissioner had quietly reversed a policy decision he had made to award marks to officers based on an officer’s grade in CXC or GCE or his marks at the promotion examination for English Language. Officers would receive up to a maximum of 35 points. The pie chart of potential appointees must have caused great alarm because the policy was suddenly changed.
Instead of awarding a score based on one’s grade or examination marks, Mr Philbert has revered his policy and decided that ALL officers would receive the maximum of 35 points REGARDLESS of their grade or score. So an officer with a distinction or someone who scored 90% would receive the same amount of points as the one that barely scraped through and obtained a grade C or 40 marks! So much for the promised change, Mr Philbert!
The incongruity in officers scoring high in the examination but being marked down in the interview reinforces this perception. The fact that the authorities refuse to have an ethnically balanced interview panel only adds fuel to the fire. Indo-Trini police officers feel that the odds are stacked against them. Why nothing is done about such an obvious legitimate grouse is a mystery that only the Police Commissioner, the Police Service Commission and the Minister of National Security can answer.
This new policy will not yield the best officers. There are far too many qualified people looking for jobs in the police service for Mr Philbert to promote this kind of mediocrity. Transformation and change will not come if we flip-flop on important policy changes. And its time Mr Philbert listen to the cry of the Indo-police officers that serve under his command. They feel as if they are being given a raw deal because the promised change to the ethnic composition of the interview panels in keeping with the Selwyn Ryan report from the Centre for Ethnic Studies has not come. Ethnic diversity in the hierarchy of the police service might never be achieved unless this is changed.
By Anand Ramlogan 2009-03-05
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"Acting appointments have traditionally been used as a tool to manipulate the public service. People have been known to be left languishing, acting for many years, only to see their juniors leapfrog ahead of them when the Commission mysteriously and suddenly decides to fill the post. In the case of prison officer Dougnath Rajkumar, the Privy Council was astonished to note that he had been acting for 14 years!"
The manipulativeness of this is true - but cuts both ways i.e. the manipulated and the manipulators. This is the basic equation in all such dynamics. And it is mirrored in other areas of life abuser-abused, buyers-sellers, haves-have nots. etc etc. The point is there are always idiots willing to play ball. Oh yes, some may play for many many years and when dey eh get what dey was bargaining for dey might seek legal avenues to correct certain things.
The point is that it is a common tactic and people are generally weak-willed. People will sacrifice their souls to put food, shelter and comforts around them - and there is no better place than Trickidad to demonstrate that point. Dem fellas in dee Privy Congcil (aka Council) eh know how dohtish people is in Monkey Rock, nah.
But it is human selfishness that plays most among those who are ruled. Their rulers know very well the methods to use. Here it is:
Do all the above to enough numbers of people and the 'rulers' will select those they need to do their bidding. The selected will remain obedient, subservient, loyal and be least likely to bite the hands that feed.
So we can blame the rulers..but I always focus strongly on those that put the rulers in positions of power and who adopt the dog-in-heat position. As I always say "When you get humped...enjoy it!" No mercy from me!
Two stories recently caught my eye: Newsday 2009-03-07 - Himself probing himself and Guardian 2009-03-07 - Tesheira owning shares in CL. Well forgive me if I see something of a pattern in these two stories.
If you ain't asking yourself a simple question like: "Is this the road to first world status, as per Vision 2020?" - then you must be seriously lacking in intelligence. Who ah mean? Ah mean you who readin' dis!
Have you no shame living in a country like dat? Am I ashamed? Of course. I doh want nobody tuh know I from a place like dat.
The Rape Crisis Society in T&T reported that there were 229 new cases of rape reported during the 2008, in addition to 615 continuing investigations. Over 60 percent of its clients were between 12 and 26 years of age.
And - "..only 6 percent of inquiries into police killings of civilians have been completed since 1999. In cases where charges were brought, 50 percent of the officers were acquitted."
Whey ah get dem stats from? Look here: US State Departments 2008 Human Rights Report on Trinidad (Feb 2009).
Well boy, doh worry ..jes t'ink about nex' year Carnaval - eh? T'ings eh so bad man....and yuh cyah believe everyt'ing yuh read on dee intanet - eh?
...once more Anand has zeroed in and highlighted an "inept Governmental Regime" caught with their "pants down" again, and not only that, but has shone the light on the many "festering sores" on the back-sides of the average Trini citizens of this country, who seem to only feel how much it hurts when they "sit down", and all the other times while they are standing and up and about, ...well its fete time, its Carnival time, its wine and jam time, and all the pain and suffering seem to numb itself temporarily, until they sit down again...!
... and as Captain Walker pointed out, in making matters worse, the problem is not with the Government, but it rests with the very same people, the ones who keep re-electing and putting back the same inept Government in power time and time again...!
... in fact just recently, Patrick was reported to have said at the "Resort" that he is leading his "Ninth or Tenth Government" ...and I am not sure if that was meant to be as an "accolade to his tenure and experience", or to boast about he being able to outsmart the people for over forty years and get away with it unscathed, all the while he keep talking to them about "getting rid of slavery", while he put the "yoke around their necks, and the ball and chain on their feet", for the second time around...in their lifetime..."slavery of the mind..".???
...its is quite obvious that either Patrick has no vision and foresight to include the future for our people and our nation, as "succession planning" is not on his agenda or mind, and he has no intention, and has even stated quite clearly, that he has no interest in it, as "he won't be here, read my lips..." or words to that effect just before he went to Cuba for his surgery...!
...most administration in today's democratic world operates on the basis of "succession planning", no half-decent corporation would be caught dead without a "plan in place" for "key people" in the organization...on how the business would continue in the event of a disaster and "key people" being eliminated or removed...!
...but not Patrick, as Anand so rightly put it, he is using his "political position" to continue to apply "political pressure" and in doing so, to maintain "power at all cost", so all these "ACTORS", or Acting Appointees" all become slaves to the slave master himself, and they all fall for his mamaguy and sweet talk, all the while "he plays them like puppets on a string" to manipulate and support his power base and "reinforce the slave master mentality on them"...!
...so like Captain said, no mercy for them, cause "they like it so"...you see they are the ones with the "Power" but every time they bend over and hand it over to Patrick, this the end result of what to expect...it should not be surprising to them...should it...???
...in most parts of the democratic world, an acting appointment for Government positions has a time life of "three months" at which time it must be reviewed and/ or filled permanently...but not to exceed twelve months or a year...as it becomes immediately grievable and subject to third party judicial review...!..in short, its either the position exists or it does not...if it does then it must be filled permanently, and if it was temporary or project oriented, then there's a life span attached to it....and spelt out clearly...!
...but not so in good ole T&T, because the people like it so, till the next fete or carnival is over and sanity of life's reality kicks in...?
...that way, Patrick good on his way to his elenth or twelfth time leading the government into an abyss of a renewed cesspool of stench and slavery and suffering...much to "his people's enjoyment" as they wallow in it up to their necks, even as they drown in it, even if it kills them, like the Mighty Sparrow sang quite a while ago, "sun and rain beating de man and he cyar get away poh fellah"...!!!.
....so its the people who have to get out of this, and not allow Patrick to ram this horse manure down their throats, even if "his spirits tells him to"...they need to tell him firmly and quickly....be gone demon, get lost...spirit and all...???...otherwise, is more sores and blisters on their back-sides...and lots more hurting in the future to come yet again...!!!
...keep it up Anand, good work, the people need all the help they can get....."obeah man included", ... like the man have them under a spell or what...???
...good luck...Trini.t.o.o