Has the War on Bad Manners made one iota of difference? This is the question we asked members of the public last week to measure the success of the campaign which was launched over two months ago.
Seepaul Bienda - accounts/payroll clerk: `I am not sure about the War on Bad manners. I think manners depend on the attitude of the individual. When persons feel like being polite they will be polite. When something upsets them they might just pass you straight without saying good morning. I believe it starts at home. If people can’t practice it at home they won’t be practicing it in the streets. I haven’t seen any changes in the areas they targeted and I don’t think that the changes will be sudden. And aside from the individual persons it is something that also depends on a person’s environment. If you’ve grown up in a bad environment you will do anything anywhere. But the fact that it really depends on the individual is no reason not to try. I am sure that they have changed one or two people but it has to begin at home.’
Penelope Herbert - teacher: `I haven’t seen any change. Guyanese police still behave the same way. Especially the men, they are still so rude to women. But I believe that the campaign is important because there are a lot of simple things that people need to do but they don’t do it. Like saying good morning or good afternoon. And when you try to correct them, they are always so hostile. I think the campaigners have a lot of work to do because some men still urinate in public and they don’t have any respect for women whatsoever. If they want to make their campaign more effective they should concentrate their efforts on the home. They should encourage parents to teach their children manners. Even teachers ought to get involved. I teach my children to mind their manners everyday.’
Kevin Haywood - sales representative: `I think there has been a little change in people who have been willing to change. I am talking about professionals. And I think that they need to get involved in this campaign because there is still a lot of work to be done, especially with regards to children. They encourage the minibuses. Do you know that there are some minibuses which don’t pick up adults anymore because they can double up with the children? At the corner of King Street and South Road I saw schoolchildren lined up with Guinness bottles in their hands. You try to stop them and they abuse you.’
Natasha Zamal - accounts clerk - `I think it has: people now lose their jobs if they can’t talk to customers. I’ve known a few people who have lost their jobs because as they say manners make man. That’s what my boss has told me and I believe it.’
Rosetta Jacobs - domestic: `I have been living in Tobago for the last three years and things are so different there. The people are very civilised and even if they don’t know you they say good morning or good afternoon. I came back to Guyana in March and things are completely different. Most people love to curse and they use derogatory racist slurs. I think that more needs to be done because there can be a lot of improvement.’
Ivan Kryenhoff - cook: `It has made a lot of difference to me. We use to hear minibus conductors cursing people or people cursing in the road. But since the War on Bad Manners campaign people have been `pulling up’ each other. The campaigners are doing a good job. They have done a good job, especially with the minibus conductors who you would have once heard cursing a passengers for $10. I hardly hear it now.’
Deomatie Dhanraj - `It has made a little impact. Some of the conductors are trying to be more courteous. Mind you, only a few. They have cut down on the cursing and the rough manner in which they handle passengers. But there is still a lot more for them to do. They still need to learn to listen to passengers and some store workers need to learn how to deal with customers. They need to correct their behaviour.’
Quincy Roberts - student: `I think it has made a difference. They have brought back old values and it is good. I have seen changes particularly in the minibus conductors. Based on what I have seen so far they are more respectful now, both to the young girls and elderly people.’
Ginnel Garra-way - multipurpose technician: `I think it has made a difference in certain areas. For example you see bus conductors dressing properly for work now. But there is still a lot more to be done, especially as it relates to young people. They don’t seem to care, despite the ads on television. They behave so unmannerly, they curse on the road, they `double up’ in minibuses. I believe it is important for this campaign to concentrate on young people and maybe one of the ways they can do so is by getting more young people involved in the activity.’
Dimitri Rampersaud - office assistant: `Yes. Minibus operators are greeting people with `good morning’ now. That’s a good thing. Manners are important in Guyana, “Manners maketh man,” they say. I have seen a little improvement but they could still do more with the drivers and conductors. I don’t think it has been a waste of time, I think it is important.’