GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Guyana's government has sought to distance itself from any form of discrimination in the registration process for nationals who are to receive GUY$100,000 in cash grants.
Guyanese nationals registration for GUY$100,000 cash grants from the governmentIn a statement, the Irfaan Ali government said it has become aware of reports on social media “that seem to suggest that there may have been an incident infringing the religious rights of one or more Muslim citizens during the registration process for the GUY$100,000 cash grant.
“We wish to clarify that during the training of enumerators involved in the registration exercise, clear instructions were issued requiring staff to avoid any form of discrimination against any citizen”,
The government said more importantly, the training addressed how citizens wearing Hijab should be approached.
“Specifically, the enumerators are required to take photographs of citizens with the Hijab, an those wearing the burqa (face veil) shul be escorted to a private area for their photographs to be taken by a female enumerator”.
The statement said that ensure an environment of comfort and inclusivity for the process nationally, “we have selected public venue within proximity to residential areas and considerate of the religious and cultural backgrounds of all citizens.
“To date, of the tens of thousands, who were registered, we have only seen one incident on Facebook. Eve though the incident was not formally reported, it is currently being investigated and if anyone is found guilty, he or she will be penalised,” the statement said, providing telephone numbers for persons to report any such incident.
“The government wishes to reiterate that the GUY$100,000 cash grant currently being issued is for every Guyanese 18-years and older and no form of discrimination or infringement of citizens’ tights will be tolerated during the registration process,” the statement added.
Government’s cash grant Initiative was announced by President Ali in October and earlier this month, the National Assembly approved a GUY$30 billion supplementary provision for the distribution of the cash grant.
The government has outlined a four-step process for the initiative which begins with the registration exercise, followed by the verification of the registrants with the next stage being the cutting of checks then distribution to persons 18 and above.
The government has made it clear, however that there will be no registration service provided to eligible Guyanese who are living overseas.
“Let me say again for people overseas. They are asking me if they can go to the consulate to register (and) if we have a desk in Queens or Brooklyn or Toronto to get them registered. The answer is no. We made it clear that you have to register in Guyana and college your cheque in Guyana,” Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo told a recent news conference
