Black Immigrant Daily News

door Ivan Cairo PARAMARIBO — De regering gaat in het begrotingsjaar 2023 mogelijkheden scheppen voor meer investeringen in de landbouwsector

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Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar gives her response to the 2022/2023 budget on Friday in the House of Representatives. -Photo by Angelo Marcelle

OPPOSITION Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar is promising to restart the mothballed Petrotrin oil refinery and create a new sugar manufacturing industry.

She made these the cornerstone of a UNC government’s economic recovery plan as she responded to the budget in the House of Representatives on Friday.

Accusing the PNM Government of dubious figures and a budget that was a “charade and sham” that failed country and citizens, she said the budget brought no hope or plan to grow the economy.

She voiced support for GATE access, VAT refunds, procurement reform, job creation, food production and fuel security, and expressed opposition to the impending property tax and the Revenue Authority.

Persad-Bissessar said the Prime Minister’s call to “stay the course” would take TT straight to disaster. She promised a UNC government would steer the country into calm waters.

She offered five pillars to restore the economy, including reopening the refinery to regain energy security.

“We believe Government must re-examine its plan and we are proposing to restart a reformed Pointe-a-Pierre oil refinery.

“By re-opening Petrotrin, we will have greater fuel security, save foreign exchange, provide meaningful jobs and ensure the company continues to contribute to the Treasury,” the Siparia MP said.

She also proposed a solar energy park at Tamana and recycling parks in north Trinidad.

‘My plans are…’

“We believe there must be a jump-start to our agriculture sector by leasing 25,000 acres of former Caroni lands to create agricultural parks, while spending at least ten per cent of the PSIP (public sector investment programme) to develop agricultural access roads, irrigation and drainage for agricultural parks.

“We will also incentivise the private sector to establish an agro-processing plant in Couva,” she said.

Persad-Bissessar proposed funds for food security, infrastructure and climate.

Earlier in her response, she said the budget’s tax break was too small “for a worker to buy even a doubles.” She proposed to ease the tax burden on citizens and businesses post-covid19.

“We will simplify the personal and corporate income tax regime, simplify the VAT regime,” she said, “remove more basic food items from the VAT net, and improve the efficiency of the tax-collection system by strengthening the Board of Inland Revenue, the VAT office and Customs and Excise.”

Persad-Bissessar said the UNC’s master plan aims to create 50,000 new jobs.

“We have identified several prosperity engines to create new jobs, transform our economy and create more revenue.”

She promised a sugar cane growing and refining industry via a Brechin Castle agro-processing complex and sugar manufacturing facility.

New tech for TT

Regarding new technologies, Persad-Bissessar proposed an east-west biotechnology manufacturing corridor, Sevilla digital innovation park, and Tamana Solartech renewable energy plant.

Port of Spain will get a port revitalisation, creative arts area and steelpan manufacturing facility.

She mooted Tobago as a duty-free shopping zone, including a Plymouth cruise ship complex/marina.

Persad-Bissessar proposed a Piarco aircraft maintenance hub, Cedros/Moruga economic zone, and Point Galeota energy logistics hub.

These prosperity engines will mobilise the private sector, she said, with large multiplier effects to kickstart recovery.

She promised to lead a caring and hard-working government.

“We cannot go on this way. Our country and our people deserve better.” To boost healthcare, she vowed longer clinic hours, a patients’ charter and a relaunched Children’s Life Fund.

She said a UNC government would enact procurement reform. The property tax should be withdrawn, she said. Persad-Bissessar warned against the national statistical institute board being politically appointed if replacing the Central Statistical Office, and the TT revenue authority would lack the independence of the Board of Inland Revenue.

Incompetent government

Despite its being in office for seven years, Persad-Bissessar damned the Government as being manned by clearly “incompetent and unqualified people.”

Listing rises in a basket of food items, she warned of more rises of one to three per cent because of the increase in fuel prices announced on Monday by Finance Minister Colm Imbert, even in the stark reality of a sharp fall in people’s standard of living.

The one-off $1,000 fuel grant to those on social grants would fill a car’s fuel tank – at the most – thrice, she scoffed.

Persad-Bissessar alleged a 68 per cent drop in GATE enrolment and lamented a deafening silence on promises to regularise nurses’ job status. The Government, she claimed, has created no new meaningful jobs, and relies heavily on borrowings.

Persad-Bissessar marvelled that Imbert had boldly and publicly admitted to exceeding government’s overdraft limit. She alleged he had borrowed $7 billion which he did not state in his budget speech on Monday – and planned to borrowed $8 billion more.

Persad-Bissessar asked Imbert to state the size of the Heritage and Stabilisation Fund (HSF).

She said the budget’s incentives would not work – for energy exploration, hiring apprentices (amid a halving of OJT enrollees) and getting smaller companies into renewable energy ventures.

Budget documents, she said, revealed the Government envisaged netting $40 billion in taxation revenue. She scoffed that troubled TSTT was the government’s strategic partner in digitisation.

Persad-Bissessar challenged Imbert’s GDP figures.

Saying oil hit US$83 on Friday, she asked if he had deliberately set the budget at an unrealistic US$90 to avoid payments into the HSF.

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Black Immigrant Daily News

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Black Immigrant Daily News

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Black Immigrant Daily News

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Members of the TT Defence Force and Coast Guard stand at attention at the flag raising re-enactment ceremony during the 50th anniversary of independence celebrations held at Woodford Square, Port of Spain, on August 30 2012. – File Photo

THE Defence Force (TTDF) has accepted government’s four per cent wage increase offer amid rumours of anger and discontent among the ranks over this decision made by the top brass.

The acceptance of the offer came on Friday, according to a release from Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) Dr Darryl Dindial.

This Defence Force is the second branch within the public service to sign off on the offer after the Amalgamated Workers Union, which represents daily-paid workers in the Port of Spain Corporation, did so several weeks ago.

However, sources within the force say while the CPO lauded the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and others for “balancing expectations,” soldiers on the ground are angry over the agreement. Some even took to social media to vent their dissatisfaction with the CDS.

The CPO’s release confirmed that the Defence Force signed off on the offer which covers the collective bargaining periods, 2014-2016, and 2017-2019.

Along with the pay rise, the TTDF also got new allowances for instructors conducting basic recruit training; radar operating and technicians; dog handling; increments for permanent reservists; allowances for front-line operators engaged in inter-agency task force operations and maritime duties; and incentive allowances for pilots and aviation engineers.

“Additionally, subject to the approval of the Cabinet, the Force received consideration for a special missions allowance for regional operations and compensation for a part-time Strategic Think Tank.”

“The latter is intended to support the development and modernisation of the TTDF to improve on the delivery of its mandate, treat with new and emerging threats, the development of doctrine, its military justice system, wellness system and revised recruitment, performance management and training standards,” the release said.

UNPRECEDENTED

Newsday was told this was the first time since the 1970 Black Power Revolution that soldiers had signed off on wage negotiations before the police.

Police Social Welfare Association (PSWA) president Inspector Gideon Dickson said it is common practise for police officers to negotiate wages, then soldiers who do not have a bargaining body and cannot take industrial action, depend on the results of those negotiations to set a precedent, where they would then be paid at a higher rate.

“I am not aware that something like this has ever happened before,” Dickson said.

“I know there is a principle by which they would get the same wages negotiated by the police and a third.”

Dickson said the police are still engaged in negotiations with the CPO. The PSWA has responded to the CPO’s offer with a counter offer and are awaiting a response, Dickson said.

“We have not approached negotiations from the perspective of emotions and conventional methods to try to achieve the best for the membership. We approached it from a scientific perspective. We did our research. All our engagement was from a scientific point of view.”

He added that the PSWA has taken several factors into consideration with its counter-offer including the rate of death of police officers and rising crime.

TTDF’S SHAM

NEGOTIATIONS

Meanwhile, the Fire Service Association (FSA) labelled the completed negotiations between the TTDF and the CPO as a sham, while speaking to reporters on Friday.

FSA head Leo Ramkissoon said because the TTDF does not have a bargaining unit, they were taken advantage of and forced into accepting the offer.

“I am quite certain that like the remainder of the wider trade union movement and workers across TT, soldiers and other members of the Defence Force would, on a personal level, reject the offer of four per cent over six years,” Ramkissoon said.

“I believe this is another demonstration of a strong-arm tactic of the State to impose on workers an adjustment to salary which amounts to a wage cut – one which, if the soldiers had the choice – they would have rejected.”

“But because the soldiers have no bargaining unit and are susceptible to the impositions to the CPO and the State, they would have had little choice.

“This announcement of an agreement as if they were involved in a genuine salary negotiation and they hammered out some things to be fair, it is nothing less than a sham.”

Ramkissoon said the acceptance by the TTDF could not be established as a precedent for other arms of the protective services, as it is only the court that can determine what should be a precedent and what should not.

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