THE EDITOR:
Despite the Soca Warriors defeat in their recent World Cup encounter, none but the mean spirited or the fool would seek to deny them the credit they have richly earned.

Similarly, none but mean spirited paparazzi, like Liburd of the Express and Jennings of the BBC, would attempt to besmirch the reputation of the individual whose generosity and hard work made that achievement possible. 

Without his single minded dedication Trinidad and Tobago could not today have aspired to compete in Premiership, far less World Cup football.

Because of Jack Warner, TnT earned the attention, respect and support of Europeans, hitherto unaware or unimpressed with our comparatively postage stamp sized Republic in the Caribbean, save for travel advisories warning their citizens against rampant crime!  

Full credit to Warner, since prior to departure for Germany the road thereto was paved solely out of his personal finances.

Indisputably, he has exhibited a level of patriotism, commitment and self sacrifice seldom seen in this part of the world. 

 Nor has Warner’s contribution to the land of his birth been limited to sporting arenas, hitherto closed to nations the size of our own. Jack Warner has proven his dedication and commitment not to tribe, race or class, but to national progress and equity for all. 

He has so done by unwavering support, both financial and personal, for the most progressive administration to exercise political power in our country since Williams “let his bucket down” in 1956!

For this uncharacteristic political stance, he has suffered strident opprobrium and abuse from his co-ethnics.

It is safe to posit that only his achievements and contribution to national football has inured him from the fate recently suffered by deposed Indo PM Basdeo Panday, to whom he is still a faithful disciple. 

Herein, unfortunately, lies the rub. In  unwavering loyalty to an idol, whose appeal is  now confined to the dispossessed of Caroni, Warner, for all his laudable achievement, has cast himself in the role of strongest ally of an incompetent and corrupt ruling dispensation.

Just like the People’s National Movement (PNM) in their ivory towers, Warner and his political colleagues are being sadly misled by self seeking sycophants -- to a suffering society’s detriment.

 When I was made privy to the proposed elevation of Winston Dookeran to leadership of an embattled United National Congress (UNC), like many then, I was initially concerned at Dookeran’s suitability in a role  brokered by Warner.

I would have preferred a brilliant young lawyer like Anand Ramlogan, were he prepared to accept leadership of a resurgent UNC. 

As things have developed, thank God, that prospect never arose, or I might be persona non grata to more than just the PNM and Panday UNC!  

Political wisdom  opted for prestigious and untarnished experience over youthful ability.

Whatever the choice, if the UNC were ever to regain popularity and retain dwindling support, Panday’s retirement had ceased to be a debatable option.

Resultant resurgent hope, based as much upon PNM abuse as on Dookeran’s prestige, was peremptorily squashed by the undemocratic UNC executive elections held and blatantly manipulated by the Panday faction of the party to ensure the desired result.

 Panday, like Williams it appears, is determined to manipulate, even beyond the grave, the party he founded.

Nothing  so effectively damns  UNC  credibility and earns it the disgust of a frightened and suffering society as the only viable alternative administration in sight!

Indisputably the Vasant Bharat/ Yetming fiasco, and subsequent re-admission of Ramesh, in addition to validating the charges of Lucky, Khan, Yetming et al, has done more to destroy any popular concept of the UNC as a “government in waiting” than the best combined efforts of Robinson and Manning on and since December 24, 2001.

That mockery of the democratic process, far more than Robinson’s “prostitution of morality, spirituality and the rule of law”, publicly sounded the death knell of the Panday UNC and unfortunately, Jack Warner’s political credibility along with it.

The sooner, therefore, that both Warner and Dookeran recognise and accept the dangerous folly of further involvement with the decaying carcass of a once vibrant UNC, the sooner they will again begin making valid contributions to the return of caring, equitable and effective administration, so necessary to the survival of our beloved TnT.

Warner can now do even more for TnT by publicly embracing and endorsing the man, whose role as Panday’s successor, he personally brokered.

THE EDITOR:
WHILE we may have a few billions in our heritage and stabilisation funds, we need many more billions in a rainy day account, to assist with problems that may occur with a drastic reduction in the price of oil.

The oil boom will not last forever, so we should never make the same mistakes as we did during the last oil boom.

It seems that many citizens are very concerned about the $4 billion budget increase government is requesting in order to subsidise its gasoline bill and to finance construction and other government’s projects.

If the government asks for more money outside of the budget to help in project to assist all citizens -- not just a few -- then by all means they should get the funds to do so.

However, priority should be given to upgrading our health facilities and to improving the state transportation system, which at the moment are both inadequate.

Money should also be spent to beef up security for citizens of the country.

At the moment this is not happening because police officers still complain that they don’t have sufficient vehicles to help them fight crime even though money is no problem at this time.

The government should ensure that all dilapidated schools and police stations are repaired and that all villages in Trinidad and Tobago are equipped with water, electricity and recreation grounds.

All roads throughout the country must also be properly maintained.

These are the kinds of projects that must get priority.

Many citizens are fearful that when oil prices plummet, there could be a repeat of the boom and bust of the previous oil boom of the 1970’s.

That’s why Government should refrain from wastage and ensure our petro-dollars are managed properly in order to cushion the effects of a drop in oil revenue, which, as I have indicated before, is bound to happen at some time in the future.

Government should desist from investing millions of our dollars in project which continue to drain our wealth.

I wonder why we continue to invest millions of dollars in British West Indian Airways (BWIA) when for years now the airline has been losing money.

If Caroni was closed down because it was not viable then BWIA should be shut down as well or sold to someone who can derive a profit from the airline.

We cannot continue to spend millions to prop up a badly run state enterprise especially when 25 per cent of our people live in poverty.

Government must look at all State enterprises which for years have been eroding the country’s wealth. If they cannot be viable, then we must seek alternative means.

The Iron and Steel Company of Trinidad and Tobago.

(ISCOTT) which was losing millions of dollars when it was run by the State became a viable and profitable company after it was sold to ISPAT.

Something is definitely wrong with the way we run some of our State enterprises.

I cannot understand why the authorities are not doing more to curb the escalating inflation rate in the country.

Apart from the continuing increase in food prices, properties in many areas have increased by more than 40 percent in recent times and it will get worse if we fail to manage the oil boom funds properly.

The tax reduction recently given to workers has placed more pressure on the 25 per cent of people living under the poverty line because they must now cope with rising inflation.

Even those workers who benefited substantially from the tax break are now complaining that their gains have been eroded by the high prices of food and other commodities.

The situation will get worse for the poor and even the middle class with the continued high increases in wages.

People in charge of our wealth must account for every dollar and those who misappropriate the money must be brought to justice.

There are too much wheeling and dealing going on in the country with many people in charge of our wealth guilty of being less than honest.

Those politicians and their friends who are before the courts on corruption charges must face the full brunt of the law if all the evidence show that they misappropriated funds while in public office.

We must demand that people involved in government projects seek the interests of all citizens and not just themselves, their friends and families.

THE EDITOR:
IT is difficult to understand why efforts such as those of CRY can be subjected to such negativity, with-out examining the circumstances that may or may not have contributed to possible abuses at these facilities.

I, for one, have heard of such allegations in other institutions more well-established than CRY.

I feel sympathy for Lystra Penny, simply because of the struggles, pain and personal sacrifices I know she has had to endure over the years in defence and protection of street children.

It must be a devastating feeling for her at this time to be subjected to such public ridicule, following allegations of abuse at the CRY children’s home.

I know she has a strong personality and will rebound from this unfortunate episode in CRY’s operation.

Many are unaware of the degree, personal and family sacrifices that must be pursued in attending to children who come from broken and dysfunctional families and homes.

The range of circumstances are wide, broad and varied.

Each requiring individual attention to address.

Psychological, physical and attitudinal considerations usually require professional attention.

In most instances, these homes lack the financial resources to meet this cost and rely of free State assistance or on the gratis of professionals.

A situation that is subjected to uncertainty and untimeliness.

People like Penny are too often overlooked for commendation by the society.

I feel this is due to their humble backgrounds and silent way they go about doing God’s inspired work.

Efforts that can be easily infiltrated by the devil’s representatives in the form of paedophiles and other no-good predators.

I believe that if Social Welfare officers were sufficiently trained and proactive, the long period between application for assistance and the actual receipt of the assistance could be drastically shortened.

As Mr. Smith said, the system is punitive and managed by insensitive personnel with an elitist orientation.

The net result is that CRY got nothing, while bigshot and influential institutions are given ham, lamb and jam.