RX Radio Presenter and proprietor James Onen aka Fatboy has proposed that government leaders should be put on account for the policies they make, especially when they impact negatively on the population.
He made the recommendations during The Fatboy Show with his co-host Olive, as they weighed in on the plight of teachers after a two-year lockdown was imposed on schools.
On Monday, leaders of private schools and teacher’s associations came out and asked the Education Ministry to provide psychosocial support to teachers since many are battling anxiety as they lie in uncertainty of their future. It is reported that some have since succumbed to the challenges by giving in to dreadful decisions as suicide.
According to Fatboy, most of the policies made by government officials are non-empathetic given that they don't affect their makers directly.
“I've been quite critical of the policy makers because they are not adversely affected by these policies. If you are a ministry of Health technocrat or government bureaucrat, it doesn't matter to you that various sectors of the economy are shut down because you are still getting full salary, allowances and probably more.”
He went on to add, “So when technocrats attend government consultative meetings, it's easy to advise the president to shut down the economy and lockdown schools, since you will continue driving in your air-conditioned four-wheel drive cars.”
Olive, quoting civil society, provided that the decision to keep a lockdown on schools has not only affected teachers but also students who will graduate from institutions as half-baked professionals because of studying practical courses online.
Fatboy, more so said that: “It's more tragic that there is no accountability held to government officials because when will we ever be able to summon leaders about decisions that lead to economic catastrophes for people in different sectors? There is often nothing done and I think this is unfair but what I’d propose is for parliament to make laws that will limit the ability of the government to unilaterally impose these sorts of restrictions without enough consultation because as per the policies made in regard to Covid-19, the conversation has been too one sided.”
The Fatboy show is hosted by James Onen aka Fatboy, Olive, Sarah and Lesham every weekday from 6am to 10am on RX Radio.
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