Three dismissed workers prevented entry to ministry compound
Stabroek News
December 3, 2002
Three dismissed workers of the Ministry of Labour, Human Services and Social Security were refused entry yesterday morning when they tried to enter the ministry's compound.
On Friday two of the workers were handed dismissal letters, not three as earlier reported, but yesterday morning the third worker was given his letter after he reported to work. The dismissal of the three officers was related to their alleged involvement in the Old Age Pension Scam.
Stabroek News understands that the officers subsequently headed to the Guyana Public Service Union.
The three officers accompanied by two union officials turned up at the ministry's gate and made several attempts to get in but were refused entry by security guards. They stood in front of the ministry for a little while before leaving but returned to meet the same situation.
When Stabroek News arrived at the ministry, the gate was padlocked with the security guards carefully manning it. Some workers inside the building stood at windows observing the scene outside.
A source close to the ministry told this newspaper that the officer who received the letter yesterday morning reported to work as normal but the dismissal letter had been placed on his desk before he got in. The dismissal was attributed to unacceptable behaviour.
The three were instructed to hand over all assets, keys and other items belonging to the ministry to another senior officer.
The officers' dismissal came in the wake of an announcement by a Post Office official that the seven postal officers who were interdicted from duty are likely to be charged by police. Efforts to contact the Permanent Secretary yesterday proved futile.
The scam which involves the printing and cashing of fake vouchers by postal employees and officers within the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security is estimated to have cost the government $34M between May and September. The police are waiting on a report from the Auditor General's office before proceeding further. (Nigel Williams)
