Mark: WASA next on the 'chopping block'

UPDATE:

OPPOSITION Senator Wade Mark says after the retrenchment of workers at Petrotrin and TSTT, the next entity on the “chopping block” is WASA.

He was contributing to debate on The Finance Bill in the House yesterday.
“Under this Government unemployment has sky-rocketed. They are now retrenching not in five hundred but in 10,000 people.”

He said it has been reported in the media WASA CEO Ellis Burris has been sent home “because he revealed to workers the diabolical plan of the Government to retrench hundreds of workers at WASA.”

He continued: “So WASA is next. First it was Petrotrin, 10,000 workers (it was reported that 5,500 workers were sent home). Then it was TSTT with close to 500 workers. And we are being told by the newspapers’ reports (yesterday) that the Government is heading towards WASA. So WASA is next on the chopping block.”

He also commented on the announcement that the untaxed portion of the severance packages for Petrotrin workers would be increased from an initial figure of $300,000 up to $500,000. He asked Energy Minister Franklin Khan to provide a detailed breakdown of packages given to former Petrotrin workers with the amounts – but not the names – as he wanted to know how many workers went home with a million dollars after tax.

“Those Petrotrin workers were to receive millions and millions of dollars and several of them, if not thousands of them, would be going home with a handsome pay amounting to almost millions of dollars per worker.”

On the bill he said people sometimes have to wait two to three years to get their pension. He noted in the bill Government was offering a temporary pension of $3,500 and instead of dealing with the issues of bureaucracy and administrative challenges they were offering a “little kakadah.”

“Why is that required? Does it bring any comfort to the individual who laboured in the vineyard. They ought to be receiving their pension and gratuity.”

He suggested all office holders receive a minimum pension of $5,000.
On the economy he said crude oil production was at its lowest since 1952.

“TT more backward today than before (the current administration) arrived on the compound.”
He said the macroeconomic indicators show the TT economy has been heading in the wrong direction for the last three years under this administration and the debt to GDP ration was close to 65 per cent.

Mark added there has been no real economic growth but only artificial and superficial growth. He said the tables in the review of the economy budget document showed every major sector is heading south except for energy thanks to incentives to the oil companies provided by the previous administration.

ORIGINAL STORY:

OPPOSITION Senator Wade Mark says after the retrenchment of workers at Petrotrin and TSTT the next entity on the "chopping block" is WASA.

He was contributing to debate on the Finance Bill (2018) on Tuesday.

"Under this Government unemployment has sky-rocketed. They are now retrenching not in five hundred but in 10,000 people."

He said it has been reported in the media WASA CEO Ellis Burris has been sent home "because he revealed to workers the diabolical plan of the Government to retrench hundreds of workers at WASA."

He continued: "So WASA is next. First it was Petrotrin, 10,000 workers. Then it was TSTT with close to 500 workers. And we are being told by the newspapers' reports that the Government is heading towards WASA. So WASA is next on the chopping block."

The actual figure for retrenched Petrotrin workers reported by Government was 5,500.

He said the macroeconomic indicators show the TT economy has been heading in the wrong direction for the last three years under this administration and the debt to GDP ratio was close to 65 per cent. He added there has been no real economic growth but only artificial and superficial growth.

Mark said the tables in the review of the economy showed every major sector is heading south except for energy thanks to incentives to the oil companies provided by the previous administration.