Letters

The Editor, Sir:

I read in your Monday edition of The Gleaner, the lament of Rani Sittol, a young Jamaican who has been accepted in the Faculty of Medical Sciences (UWI). Here is a young man who shared with us his excitement and in his own words wrote that " (his) dream can be realised" to become a doctor. A voice worthy of being listened to by those who make policies on our behalf has cried out for a review of the prohibitive cost of education at the tertiary level to be reviewed.

This young mind, in speaking on behalf of the many who do not hail from the social class who can afford the cost of medical education, caused me to reflect on my own situation 36 years ago (1974). Being from a family of 11 children, my hope of affording legal education was nil.

Newly instituted policy

However, through the newly instituted policy of the Govern-ment of the day, my parents were not required to pay one cent. Michael Manley had a passion for the use of education to achieve social mobility. Amidst much opposition he imposed a levy on the bauxite companies. His justification was that the poor could access free tertiary education form the proceeds "for the first time at last" . I never envisioned that there would come a time when our country would take away that hope from its young minds.

We demand that our children study hard and do well. When the children of the poor fight the odds and do well, we shatter their dreams with price tags only the rich can afford.

I would encourage the young, parents of the poor and those who are of the view that education is the solution to many of our problems, to demand that any political party seeking their votes, must commit to them that they will pursue policies which allow the poor, once again, to have the hope in becoming professionals. The most important resource of any country lies in the bright minds of its young people.

The absence of social mobility breeds hopelessness; hopelessness leaves the young, fertile minds to engage in social disorder, and the result is an ungovernable society.

I am, etc.,

BERT SAMUELS

bert.samuels@gmail.com