We stumbled across this beautiful article written by Mr. Sasenarine Singh and decided to reprint it here because it highlights some cardinal issues which have plagued Guyanese society for decades and which urgently and cautiously needs to be addressed. Mr. Sasenarine Singh is the recently appointed CEO of GUYSUCO.
On the other hand, we would like to extend congratulations to the outstanding young man featured in this story, who, despite life’s challenges, was determined to “find a way or make one.”
Meet Dan “Confucius”. “Why the name Confucius?” I asked. He told me that he attended Charlestown Secondary School and did finish high school, but his family could have only afforded to pay for 4 subjects. He got a Grade II in one of them and not so good grades in the others.
He related that it is because of his Grade II in Maths that all his friends call him such a name–because he is good with numbers. So I tested him, “what was Pythagoras’ theorem?” And he answered, “the square on the hypotenuse of a right-angled triangle is equal in area to the sum of the squares on the other two sides.”
I asked what was the trig ratio sine (Θ) and he said to me “OppositeSide/Hypotenuse.” I was impressed. So I then asked him to multiply 86 x 9, and he said 774. I could not do it myself, so I checked on the calculator, and he was right. His technique was 86 X 10 = 860 less 86.
So I asked, “why not a desk job?” He said no one hires a person with 4 subjects, plus he got a child when he was 19 and that is his focus – milk for the baby. Furthermore, this “hustle” pays more than a desk job and he is “his own boss.”
He had a strong opinion that some people want to treat their workers like slaves, and he not ready for that. I asked, “what is the 5-year plan?” He said he wants to have his own mobile food stand that sells cane juice and other fresh juices and foods. He said he will get the land and he will plant the food to serve the mobile unit because he likes farming.
They got some tough cards, but they are not giving up. This is what politicians need to do in this country – listen to the youths and use these conversations to craft solid public policies. The education system has failed us, the vocational training system has failed us and the support system to underprivileged youths has failed us, and we must fix it.
I am tired of the lies from politicians. I want to see action on this front.
