Plea for retired people

Dear Editor,

I do believe that during this period of adjustment that all Bahamians must make as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic that covers our country, there has to be some give and take by both our government and our people.

Our government must do all it can and within its resources to make sure that all citizens are protected from the dangers of the outbreak by making sure those drugs, methods, equipment and personnel are available to diagnose, house, treat and contain the spread thereof.

They must ensure that the country’s vital medical, police and defense manpower resources are positioned and they are provided with the necessary PPE to don and make sure they are positioned to cover the entire country, so that all citizens receive the same level of protection and service.

At the same time, they must govern as there are other matters that require their attention.

Our people must and have the obligation to be respectful of and obey the regulations.

They must support the measures enacted by the government which are designed to identify, treat and alleviate the disease. They must assist with keeping peace in our land and they must ensure that they do not expose themselves and families to the dangers of exposure.

If one were to rationally itemize, reconstruct and critique the methods, steps and advice given thus far by the government, one would have to agree that some of the steps taken, methods used and regulations enacted have done some good.

There is and can be an argument made that some of the same good is open to question and a method change which could have rendered it better and yielded a different and arguably another result.

As it is in all spheres of life, there is merit to the belief that as we are all different individuals, this attributes us to having a difference in methodology when it comes to performance on any item or topic. To say that the way you did it is right or the way I did it is wrong is an arguable point that can only be settled by an independent arbitrator.

In view of the stimulus packages the government has thus far enacted and those that have been announced, I have not heard mentioned once some relief for retired public officers, so that’s my point of contention in this instance.

Most, if not all, of us retired public officers are still of sound mind and good health and feel as though we can still contribute. But as we have done our time and have been put out to pasture to “enjoy our pensions” and grow old gracefully, we sit back and observe.

We spend time with family, and especially enjoy and spoil our grandchildren, grow closer to our God and serve his church, interact with friends with whom we have had a lifelong association and discuss the issues of the day (good and bad) that plague our country.

We still await the promised opportunity made to us by the powers that be to assist and share the vast amount of experience and knowledge we possess with the younger set when we retired.

Even in the face of the many obvious mistakes that are being made by those who presently occupy the chair of power, that are related to the areas we once served, we stay put and wait for the call seeking advice but we only getting “sit small and wait”. Most of us are obedient and we watch and wait and wonder whether retirement caused us to become useless. But this is only a shot across the bow of the conscience of the you know who, and an argument for another day.

Today, I plead for and ask the question of those who occupy the chair of power: are you still aware that those who are among the most vulnerable during this pandemic and trying period seem to have been forgotten?

Do you recall that we retired many years ago with a pension that we worked hard for and at least over the last five-year period, no one has thought about the need to revisit it?

Hopefully, the competent authority and the minister of finance will find a way to in this period when they are looking after the other most vulnerable of our country consider some relief to this group.

The need and plea of those who receive a pittance from National Insurance and government issued pension, devoid of any increase over its life, are as real and as urgent as you can get.

— Pat J. Evans

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source https://thenassauguardian.com/2020/04/24/plea-for-retired-people/