Don’t patronise African nations, invest in them

CELEBRITY documentary maker Stacey Dooley seems a genuine, kind-hearted person.

However, she has found herself being criticised for having a ‘white saviour complex’ (Mail), after she posted a photo of herself cradling a child while filming for Comic Relief in Uganda.

I am surprised that, after all the criticism, she does not see that she has done anything wrong.

Not everyone needs help in Africa. More and more Africans are being educated and there is a growing middle class. Those still in need want to be self-sufficient, and portraying them as povertystricken is not acceptable.

I taught in Soweto, South Africa, during apartheid when people were oppressed.

All they wanted was an education to better themselves. Being dependent on hand-outs is seen as a failure in most African cultures.

Since I moved to Britain, I have not gone around taking pictures of rundown places or workingclass people to be shown back in Africa, because that would be offensive. Why would I want to put down my adopted country?

Self-help groups supported by overseas aid are rarely seen, but starving babies and shanty towns are regular viewing.

Friends have told me that when they went on holiday to Africa they found it was totally different from the images they had seen.

Please let us stop patronising Africa, and instead invest in it for our mutual benefit. MRS MBULAHENI ALDRIDGE,

Cleethorpes, Lincs.

Reward for a bad job

MPS are being awarded a pay increase of 2.7 per cent to £79,468. Company executives are criticised for receiving golden goodbyes after being sacked for doing a bad job.

Why, then, should MPs be rewarded when they are not doing what the people of this country are telling them to?

A democratic referendum was held in 2016, resulting in a vote for leaving the EU. As Parliament is not carrying out the will of the people, why do they deserve their salaries, never mind an increase?

BRIAN BURT, Fife. HOW can a convicted criminal be allowed to be a MP, have influence and vote on matters affecting our country and its laws?

Despite being convicted and jailed for perverting the course of justice, Fiona Onasanya has the audacity to carry on using the wholly inappropriate title of honourable member.

How can she pick up her salary when honest people struggle to live on far less? She is further degrading the country’s already declining respect for politicians. MICHAEL J. COLE, Wolstanton, Staffs. I AM desperate for a General Election. The current crop of politicians on all sides of the political divide are terrified of independence because they will be held accountable and won’t be able to hide behind the EU.

We need a wholesale clear-out, starting at the top. It would be a breath of fresh air to have politicians who are business savvy and politically courageous.

JANE TAYLOR, Leeds.

Lessons in leisure

I PITY poor, worn out teachers opting for a four-and-a-half- day week (Mail).

They are obviously not content with having every weekend off, plus teacher training days, bank holidays, half-term holidays and long summer breaks.

It tires me out just thinking about the stress they are under when trying to fill all their free time.

ALLAN J. EYRE, Middlesbrough, N. Yorks.

No-shows for the GP

THE number of no-shows in just one month at my GP surgery was more than 250.

My wife attended a hospital physio appointment at noon to discover she was the first patient of a full morning’s list to appear.

The NHS could save millions by fining people for failing to show up or cancel appointments.

With widespread ownership of mobile phones, this behaviour is simply bad manners.

Name & address supplied. WHAT a waste of trained talent! GPs are so disheartened with their lot that four in ten are planning to quit in the next five years (Mail).

The country is not flushed with GPs anyway, with many surgeries closing and putting pressure on those that remain. It’s a downward spiral for primary health care.

The Government and the NHS need to act fast to try to prevent the loss of so many of our GPs, which would have a devastating effect on public health. RICHARD A. JACOB,

Southampton.

Broken promises

NOW we know Labour’s idea of democracy: it will demand a second referendum on Brexit, whatever the final outcome of EU negotiations. Gone are promises to abide by the 2016 referendum.

And what question will be posed? Vote for any agreement made by Mrs May or vote to remain. Voting to leave with no deal will not be an option. In other words, we can only leave the EU with the permission of Labour!

I live in Lancashire, where all 14 districts voted to leave the EU. But my MP feels he knows better than his constituents and can ignore their wishes.

J. WIGNALL, Accrington, Lancs.

Well-worn wardrobe

I AM amused that we should aim to wear our clothes 30 times (Mail). I still wear a T-shirt from the Welsh Scout Jamboree in 1997 and the M&S Snoopy T- shirt I bought before my children were born — my elder son is nearly 38.

And my 33-year-old son sports the Primark shirt I bought him for £1.50 when he was a teen. A. E. WOOSNAM,

Risca, Gwent.