A Fine Job

For the third time in two months our beloved Nation has been plunged into a state of national mourning. No sooner had we begun to grapple with the tragic lost of lives at Joes River, St. Joseph and Mullins, St. Peter, our Nation has been thrown further into shocked. To have been awakened on the morning of Sunday, August 26 to the horrifying news that a section of an apartment block at Arch Cot, Brittons X Road, St. Michael had crumbled beneath the ground was most dreadful. But to have discovered that a family of five had gone down with rubble is a fate for which no human being would have ever imagined. 

 Once again the National Disaster Team responded with alacrity and within forty five minutes mobilization had begun within the various agencies involved in search and rescue. No previous experience or depth of training could have prepared them for what laid ahead at what can now be described as “ground zero”. Arch Cot resembled a scene from a movie though reality revealed a more frightening fact — the earth had opened and swallowed up an apartment block, two cars and most sadly a family of five and the rescue team had resolved to reclaim them alive but unfortunately that was not to be.

  Once on the ground, the rescue team moved swiftly to secure the area, established a perimeter fence, a command centre from where a well organized and managed rescue effort was affected to bring closure to this horrible incident. Closure of this incident as understood by members of the families of the deceased, the rescue team and all Barbados was the recovery of Donavere and Cassandra Codrington and their three children. So far two bodies have been recovered and we have no doubt that the others would be recovered.  We salute the men and women who have put their own lives at risk in this rescue mission. From the pictures in the press and from the information gathered at the briefings, it is clear that the vulnerability of the area was a major challenge.

 Barbadians would have seen bold men and women being lowered into a 50 ft. cave with danger hanging all around and beneath them in hope of finding and recovering five of our loved ones. We owe them a debt of gratitude. We are proud at the level of ingenuity and determination that was exhibited by our local rescue team considering our limited resources and experience in this kind of rescue operation. That we can begin to recover bodies by day four of this operation is commendable especially when one takes into account that neither the skills of mining nor the special equipment for such a task were available as required by the challenge posed by this tragic collapse.

 It is the commendation of the top Miami Rescue Expert, Allan Perry, which makes us feel proud to be Barbadians. Mr. Perry is reported in the Nation Newspaper of Tuesday August 28, 2007 to have said that “they did a fine job; we would not have done it any way else”. To fully appreciate the work of our local team, one only has to reflect on the fact that weeks after the collapse of a coal mine in Utah, USA none of the bodies of the six miners trapped in that mine has been recovered.

        On behalf of the entire family of the Barbados Labour Party we would like to extend our deepest condolences to the Codrington family and to salute our rescue team for their bravery and boldness of courage.         

Sympathy to the families

It is with deep regret and tremendous sympathy that we write this and extend our sympathy to the families and friends of the victims of the Arch Cot Disaster.

This disaster will be remembered for years to come as it seems to be the first of its kind in modern history. Let us now hope and pray that the recovery will be uneventful as those brave men and women who contimue to venture into this unsafe environment will be safe as they carry out the difficult task of recovering the bodies of those victims of this tragedy.

Deception. Lies. Propaganda (DLP)

Just when we thought that there was unity within the DLP, lo and behold, the opposite continues to be the reality in George Street. If the words of the Former General Secretary, George Pilgrim, a man of no significant merit or achievement are to believed, that he was asked to step aside for Sinckler then clearly the political blood sport, Thompson’s pastime, is well at work. 

 Pilgrim told Barbadians that he was spoken to by Party Leader David Thompson and went on to speak revelations of the true state of affairs within the DLP. He said “I feel that in an election year, the party must appear to be fully united”. Therein lies the deception. Pilgrim has confirmed what we have been saying for years now that the party’s readiness for the next election is being planned on the false pretence that they are unified.

 On the last occasion that the DLP was elected on the pretence that they were a unified group the result was the political fiasco that led to the no-confidence motion of 1994. That debate revealed the damning disunity that has always and continues to be at the core of that party.  Barbados can ill-afford to be led by a party that only wants to “appear” to be unified but for which the evidence clearly shows is split down the middle.  

 Barbadians have paid the price for electing a fractured Government 1991 and Pilgrim must not now be allowed to think that his cheap political maneuver will in any way sway public opinion about the distrust that they now hold for the DLP.  Thompson’s desire to have Sinckler as General Secretary of the DLP at this time is not based on any sound reasoning to project the best image of the Party or improve its competence level but solely for the purpose of raising Sinckler’s dismal political profile in St. Michael North West. One would have been thought that rather than engaging in musical chairs Sinckler would have used all of his energy in North-West given the Herculean task he has with the incumbent Clyde Mascoll.

No amount of filibustering or back-of-the-hand dealing will rid the party of its many fractions that are contributing to the disunity in the Party. Barbadians can be assured that there will continue to be stormy sessions at George Street and it will not be a place for the faint hearted. By now all Barbadians would have accepted that contrary to the perceived notion of unity within the DLP a gaping hole remains visible among their parliamentarians, candidates, stalwarts and general membership.

Thompson and Freundel will never drink together. Estwick and Thompson will never be friends. Sinckler and Lashley will never share a kind word and Jones and Sealy will never be pals. Kellman will never support anyone other than himself as he believes that he is the de facto leader of the DLP, a position out of which he feels he was shamelessly cheated. Such is the surly depth of disunity within the DLP. In the meantime, the BLP is moving ahead providing a better life for all Barbadians. 

They know the road ahead is full of all challenges but we are a unified team with an outstanding leader, ready to tackle whatever lies ahead.  To allow this country to fall into the hands of desperate men who are only too ready to hack up the fatted calf for their friends and cronies is not the way for Barbados. This country deserves better.

Minimum Wage Debate

Like a recurring decimal, the issue of minimum wage legislation enters the political equation and when ever it does the rhetoric generated seem only to serve the purpose of boosting the political calculus of the parties and organizations advancing its cause at that occasion. The issue of minimum wage legislation is not unknown to this BLP government. In fact, it was this party that first mooted the idea of minimum wage legislation in its manifesto of 1971. On that occasion neither the Unions nor the Opposition DLP gave the idea any support.   

The failure of other organizations to support the BLP’s call for minimum wage legislation then and their constant hollow cries now for its introduction is testimony of the BLP’s long term vision for Barbados which has become the decisive difference between the two parties. There can be no doubt that the DLP’s practice of vulgar political pragmatism has in the past stunted the growth of this country. It has always been the task of the BLP to undertake the bold initiatives needed to propel this country into the next phase of its development. 

If this country’s development was left entirely to the DLP we would not have had the International Airport we now have. We would not have had the ABC Highway which is now the axis of commercial growth and development, the expansion of the UWI to allow greater entry of students who are desirous of attaining tertiary education and the implementation of a host of social and economic programmes that now places Barbados on the threshold of a “First World” status. In short under a DLP regime Barbados’ potential to grow is stunted by the politics of indecision and a lack of political vision. A call for minimum wage legislation from any quarter in Barbados is thirty six years late of our initial attempt to introduce this piece of legislation. 

The introduction of minimum wage legislation into Barbados at this time must be made within the context of our new economy and vast changes that have taken place within the labour market. Certainly such legislation must take into consideration the fact that the circumstances between 1971 and now are vastly different. Today the unemployment rate is low and whereas this government is committed to ensuring that every worker is allowed a decent wage by which he/she can pull themselves up the socio-economic ladder, we are also fully cognizant that a rash approach to minimum wage legislation may have the adverse effect on our current positive employment climate. 

So far the debate on minimum wage legislation seems to suggest that its introduction is for the sole purpose of combating poverty. If this is indeed true then a careful analysis of government’s tax reform policies and other social programmes on the alleviation of poverty must be taken into account. The fact that this BLP government has been relentless in its job creation programme is in keeping with its philosophy that it is to the long term benefit of a man and his family that he is given the apparatus to fish rather than be given a fish.  That we have drastically reduced unemployment has not negated our obligation to those who still fall below the acceptable wage levels and to this end government has introduced a reverse tax credit to bolster their wages.    

Limited space allotted for this column does not permit for a fuller examination of the alternative methods of poverty alleviation or indeed the wider impact of minimum wage legislation on employment and unemployment. Suffice it to say, this BLP government will continue do what is in the best interest of  workers.            

BARBADOS’ NEW OIL INDUSTRY

As Barbados prepares to launch a virtually new industry every effort is being made to ensure that its economic contribution to Barbadians is maximized and the skills needed to drive this “new” industry are provided locally. In this regard, two recent announcements by the Minister of Energy, The Hon. Elizabeth Thompson are instructive. During the Barbados Offshore Licensing Round 2007 at the Hilton Hotel last week  Minister Thompson clarified a number of issues on the development of the impending offshore drilling project. The Minister stated that a draft of the new legislation – the Offshore Petroleum Act and the Offshore Petroleum Tax Act – will be debated in the House of Assembly on Friday, August, 2007.

Fully cognizant of the challenges this new industry would have our social capital, the Minister indicated that Government would be making an investment in the training and education of Barbadians to ensure that they are in a position to supply the skills, goods and services to this sector. When one considers the importance of the oil industry to overall production and the massive well-paying job opportunities available within the industry one can understand why this Government took the bold decision in 2004 when it sought clarity before the International Tribunal of its boundary delimitation with Trinidad and Tobago. Three years later the birth of a “new” industry is set to take its place upon the social and economic landscape of Barbados.

We speak of an industry with the economic potential to completely wipe out this country’s current national debt in the shortest possible time and make unemployment a thing of the past. With the success that Barbados is already recording from its current limited resources, this new industry will make the Singapore model look like child’s play. We are happy to report that already fifty miles off Tobago a well was sunk in which gas was discovered. However, further exploration will be carried out in this area. Licenses and Bidding Blocks consisting of specific areas for exploration have been set aside for local participation. In other words Barbadians are not excluded. In addition in the event that petroleum is discovered Barbados stands to earn substantial revenue by way of royalties and taxes. To this end a development fund will be established to facilitate future physical and other social projects for Barbados.    But how did the prospects of such economic fortune befall us? We must give thanks to the Deputy Prime Minister, The Hon. Mia Mottley.

 It took political forthrightness to first convince her cabinet colleagues of her intention to engage the Government of Trinidad and Tobago. The magnitude of the legal preparation to enforce dispute settlement procedures under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) was absolutely magnanimous. Her victory at the tribunal will long live in memory. Barbadians will recall that in the heat of the debate between Barbados and Trinidad David Thompson was heard to have said that the issue could have been resolved over a bowl of cou cou and flying fish. In the recent past he has sought to give the impression the Minister Mottley does little for her salary.

We ask Barbadians what victories have Thompson ever won for us? What does he do now for the large salary he receives as leader of the misguided DLP? It is a pity that after more than twenty years of political failure to constituency and country Thompson still sees politics as a blood-sport.   

Barbadians are asked to follow the debate today live from the House of Assembly.          

PM Arthur Sets the Bar

The next general election in Barbados, constitutionally due in 2008 will focus on two very critical issues. The twin issues of leadership and the management of the economy will once again engage the attention of the electorate primarily because of the rapid progress Barbados has made towards becoming a world-class destination and a first world Nation. Barbadians are pleased with the management of the local economy and the repositioning of the country within the regional and international arena.  Barbados no longer has a government that travels abroad begging alms as it did under the last DLP administration, when bullet loans and debt rescheduling were the order of the day. To the contrary, Barbadians now live in a proud Nation that pays it way in a growing economically hostile and highly competitive world. We have proven repeatedly that we have the ability to take firm positions on matters with regional and international nature and still enjoy the respect of all. Whether it is the issue of our territorial boundaries with Trinidad or the Harmful Taxation Treaty with the OECD countries, we have demonstrated that size is not factor in the recognition of territorial sovereignty and the pursuit economic justice.

Barbados has pursued an economic and political policy that has been bedrock of its local politics and foreign policy. It is a policy that recognizes and accepts that our greatest asset is our people and that if we are to take our rightful place among the developed countries of this world, we must continue to prepare our people for the challenges of globalization. We must become greater exporters of skills, goods and services if we are to continue to enhance the standard of living of Barbadians. Barbados will therefore have to compete within the Global economy and must embrace the technological mindset which is pervasive in many countries. Since 1994, under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Arthur, Barbados pursued an economic policy that has seen the transformation of the Barbados economy from a Sugar economy to a provider of services. It is this diversification of our economy that positions us to take full advantage of the enormous opportunities arising out of CSME and other major economies around the world with whom we have trade partnership agreements.

It is beyond a shadow of a doubt that Prime Minister Arthur has a very clear vision and understanding of the trends in the global economy and has carefully mapped out Barbados’ economic course so as to maximize our benefits from the growth in the world economy.The July update of the IMF’s World Economic Outlook (WEO) recently reported that for the first half of 2007 the global economy expanded and noted that developing countries were leading this expansion. There has been strong growth in the financial markets and Barbados stands to benefit from this growth.  Its own efforts at tightening its laws and other control mechanisms will only further bolster its position as a safe and secure financial domicile.  

The evolution of the Barbados economy is now set to be a major player in the global market for services, productive factors and financial assets. The continuing development of our indigenous companies into Trans National Companies must be an attainable goal. No effort must be spared in crossing this economic Rubicon. In a globalised economy narrow nationalistic rhetoric has no place. Since leadership and economic management are the two factors influencing the outcome of the next election then clearly Prime Minister Arthur has obviously set the bar.