Restaurant owners fear closure

Owner of Trotters Restaurant Group Peter George said the damage being done to the local economy during the partial lockdown of restaurants and bars will have long-lasting effects, and affect businesses for years to come.

George told Newsday in a telephone interview on Sunday that while public-sector workers have been paid in full during the past eight months, private-sector workers continue to suffer.

“The damage being done to this country may well be irreversible. This is no longer just a medical crisis.”

George said he scheduled a meeting with his executive team on Sunday evening to decide if any of the six restaurants can remain open.

“There’s a very good chance that all six restaurants may close,” he said. They have 235 staff.

George said he has already sent a memo to staff letting them know of the possible changes to come.

He said after the last extension of the partial lockdown two weeks ago, he was not expecting the Prime Minister, at Saturday’s news conference, to lift the ban on in-house dining.

“It’s been ‘two weeks’ for the past eight months…I am no longer prepared to sit with a stopwatch in my hand waiting for the government to decide on what has now become a social and economic catastrophe.”

George said the country was already in a bad economic state before covid19 came to TT in March.

“Now eight months later, while all of our Caribbean partners and leaders have all begun to find creative and innovative ways to keep society going, we keep throwing a cold blanket on it.”

He said while he understands the government’s position on keeping the country safe from the virus, it is not going away anytime soon and the country has to learn to live with it.

“I understand the economy is not worth one dead. I can respect (the government’s) position, but there will be untold losses in the next two years…if we do not reopen.” He said his business was the first to close, five days before the Prime Minister implemented lockdown measures.

He said experts like Chief Medical Officer Dr Roshan Parasram, epidemiologist Dr Avery Hinds and government officials like Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh are being guided by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other foreign bodies, when it should be looking at the economy in the local context.

“I don’t care what the WHO says right now. We are not a developed country. We have to look at our problems through our lens and decide how to move forward for our country based on our issues just like our Caribbean partners have done.”

George said he did not appreciate the lack of faith in the public, expressed by Dr Rowley on Saturday, to maintain physical distancing and other health protocols at bars and restaurants.

“Have rules by which bars need to operate under, implement fines if you need to and put your faith in the people that you lead. Why did you campaign to them if you have no faith in them?”

He said while the private sector continues to suffer job losses and closures, the public sector has not.

“The Prime Minister, cabinet, MPs on both sides, senators, mayors, civil servants, state employees have all been paid in full for eight months, and these are the people deciding for businesses.”

He said people do not respect the contributions of the private sector to the economy.

“We do not believe in businesses. Businesses are some kind of necessary evil. That’s what they think of us,” he said.

“Businesses are being left out to dry. Every other country in the world recognised the importance of the business community and the business sector except TT.”

Owner of Pub House bars and restaurants John Quan also said bars and restaurants can reopen successfully while fully complying with heath and safety regulations, although he agrees it may be difficult to implement at first.

“As the Prime Minister said it is very difficult to control intoxicated people, but at the end of the day industries need to reopen. Consultation (with business owners) is needed because it is not a case of just reopening and allowing people to drink on the street or the pavement.

“We need to reopen and have guidelines on how we treat with it. We have to ensure that even if they reopen they don’t shut us down again.”

Quan said in order to keep on as many staff as possible, the business rotated workers “so everyone could get a small piece of the already small pie.”

He said, however, this has done little to ensure that all staff were cared for, and many have since moved on to other positions.

“Some are being evicted from their homes. They are under financial strain.”

He said the team is looking to hire more staff, but for other areas of business.

“We are exploring one or two different avenues, because we cannot wait for the industry to open. What if it shuts down again?”

He said the government does not seem to understand how much its decisions are affecting the country.