I do not believe that the Dragon Field initiative is dead. The rumours of its end are greatly exaggerated. For context, I advance this quotation from the influential US Politico newsletter. It was written about the tariff situation of last week, but it can easily fit our situation. “He likes …
Read More »Noble: Paria’s plight is rampant in T&T—First World salaries without First World leadership
Stephen R Covey, the American author of First Things First, said: ‘We are free to choose our actions… but we are not free to choose the consequences of these actions.’ As a nation, we need to contemplate this as we mourn the loss of the four men in a recent …
Read More »Kangalee: What ESOP offer? Dr Rowley offered ‘ghost shares’ to ‘ghost workers’ at Heritage
“[…] Heritage is not a publicly traded company, so how can shares be offered to employees? The share offering Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley referred to with FCB is different, in that FCB is traded on the stock exchange. “Even if Heritage was a publicly traded company, there is no …
Read More »Question for TECU: Is credit union moving further away from its working class roots?
So Thursday was World Credit Union Day. Who exactly in this country celebrated it and what exactly was being celebrated is kinda hazy to me at this moment, what with the way the credit union movement is slowly shifting away from its moorings, the working classes. Slowly, imperceptibly, there is …
Read More »Dear Editor: Why upgrade NP gas stations with taxpayers’ money then sell to private owners?
“[…] Is it that we are spending tens of millions of the people’s money to upgrade facilities only to then hand these facilities over to private owners? “With the end of subsidisation of fuel prices coupled with the handover of the people’s assets worth hundreds of millions of dollars to …
Read More »Roget accused of ‘inciting racial hatred’ against media; JTUM: It was ‘class critique’ not race
The Media Association of Trinidad and Tobago (MATT) today referred Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) leader Ancel Roget to the Equal Opportunity Commission (EOC) for ‘racist remarks directed towards certain members of the media fraternity’ during a JTUM press conference at Paramount Building, San Fernando on 4 August. Roget, while …
Read More »Noble: White Knights or Piranhas? Examining the Petrotrin sale
On 18 October 2018, almost one year ago, a doleful Mr Ancel Roget was pictured, in a photograph supplied by the OWTU, between two prospective partners, announcing their bid to acquire the Petrotrin assets. One company, Sunstone Equities, appeared from the news report to be a facilitator of government-private sector …
Read More »Demming: Why Patriotic Energies can be the game-changer for Trinidad and Tobago
The consummation of this deal with Patriotic Energies and Technologies Company Ltd (PETCL) might be the game-changer we have been looking for to change the work ethic of Trinidad and Tobago. But it will require a level of collaboration that we have not experienced in recent times. From one perspective, …
Read More »Dr Farrell: Taking Responsibility; why the Petrotrin disaster is a very Trini malaise that may be repeated
“So the logical question is: why don’t our governments fix the state enterprise governance system? The answer is partly because it sustains political patronage and corruption, partly because it buys off the trade unions, and partly because of inertia—fixing things that don’t appear to be broken simply isn’t worth the …
Read More »Dear Editor: Trade unions are irrelevant, OWTU couldn’t even shut down Petrotrin on day of ‘rest and reflection’
“The OWTU could not even get its own members to shut down Petrotrin for last Friday’s ‘day of rest and reflection’. The diminishing influence of trade unions implies that the majority of citizens see them for what they in fact are: a divisive and dangerous lobby which is concerned only …
Read More »Dear Editor: Petrotrin workers must not suffer alone, let public enquiry root out executive crooks
“The workers must not however be the only or even the first victims of the collapse and closure of the refinery. “We, the taxpayers need reassurance that the architects of this financial disaster are made to pay a price commensurate with the scale of their failures—be they directors or Cabinet …
Read More »Vidale: Closing Petrotrin’s refinery does not address issue of state-instigated corruption
It has now been more than a week since it was announced publicly that Petrotrin’s refinery would be closed down. We have been bombarded by information which can be classified as facts, alternative facts and outright fake news. Interpretation of this information has been shrouded in hues of red and …
Read More »