Dear Editor,
Soon Trinidad & Tobago would be celebrating our 60th year of independence. But the people of Trinidad & Tobago are still to be liberated.
In almost every community the people are under some degree of mental siege. The recent call by the Opposition Leader to councillors to boycott a meeting to discuss affairs affecting their communities are an example of a people afraid to take a decision in the best interest of those who elected them.
The people and especially politicians are not free to express their opinions, not free to congregate with whomever they wish, not allowed the liberty to vote their conscience and not able to take a position outside of their party’s line.
Liberty is not a bad thing, it facilitates intelligent ideas, it fosters growth and development and makes a Country stronger.
Take for example the plight of the scrap iron operatives. There are government owned or rented scrap yards with hundreds of discarded vehicles, these can be sold to the scrap iron industry and would clear up these lots. There is scrap iron available from discarded ships, from old factories, from several government owned industries. These should be made available to the scrap iron industry. PTSC can sell their old buses to bus operators who can use them privately to augment public transportation. The economic activity from these alone can have a ripple effect on the economies in many communities and reduce the reliance on government handouts.
Of course, liberating the economy would mean not having the political control over the communities that exists today. No longer can one simply instruct their operatives to fill a bus or maxi and show up at a political meeting if the sustenance of that person is not dependent on the politician.
Making registering a company less difficult, granting access to business development loans, making factory space available, making statutory obligations less burdensome and encouraging young people to be independent entrepreneurs improves a country’s economy. A person will choose any well-paying initiative that can promise long term financing and wealth instead of risking their lives in pursuing a life of criminal activity.
As Trinidad & Tobago celebrates its sixtieth anniversary, it is time to liberate the people to allow for an independent citizenry. It is time to get rid of the political burden that is placed on the people just to survive. That must start with empowering the poor in our communities. The grass along the roadways does not grow for ten days or during political seasons, it grows all the time. Therefore, those required to cut the grass and keep the community clean should be given an all the time job. Permanent employment rather that short term political handouts allow for independence and personal growth.
There are many opportunities that can be made available to the people that will empower our communities, but the independence associated with such initiatives are not politically attractive.
It is time for real independence. God
Bless Our Nation.
Steve Alvarez