Vanus James: No Cabinet members, no change for Tobago

ECONOMIST Dr Vanus James does not believe Tobago's problems will be addressed by the current government.

In an interview with Newsday on May 5, James said Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar is not aware of the issues affecting Tobagonians.

On April 28, the UNC coalition won 26 seats in the general election while the PNM got 13 and the TPP won the two Tobago seats. The two Tobago representatives are David Thomas in the East and Joel Sampson in the West.

The TPP campaigned on using the two Tobago seats to negotiate with whoever is in power, to secure autonomy and other benefits for Tobago. However, James said Thomas and Sampson, although MPs, are not able to effect change for the island.

“It doesn’t make much difference to what we have now. The two Tobago members, first of all, they’re not in the government, they’re not in the Cabinet – so how?

“So they’re effectively unable to do anything because of the way the government works. The way the Constitution works, the Cabinet runs the country and the whole Constitution is written to give effect to that."

He said it is important to be aligned with those in power.

"So you’re not in the Cabinet, you have no voice, that’s the first thing. If you’re in the Opposition, you have no voice. If you’re not aligned, you’re not in the Cabinet, you have no voice.”

He said if one is not in the Cabinet but aligned to the government with access to them to explain things about Tobago, then one must bring the substantive skills to bear to guide the government.

“These two reps do not have those skills – right up front you could know that. You know them, you know that. They can’t carry the high-power analysis required to explain or to teach the Cabinet. It’s about what’s good for the country and what’s good for Tobago in that context, that is what you are going to need Tobago to do.”

James said THA Chief Secretary and political leader of the TPP Farley Augustine would need to take charge, but even he would be found wanting.

“He still can’t do it. He would meet with the prime minister monthly. He has shown that he does not have those capabilities. He couldn’t guide (former prime minister Keith) Rowley, and you can’t manufacture those skills out of thin air to guide Kamla. You have to know what you’re talking about; you have to understand the situation in Tobago.”

He said Tobago collapsed under Augustine the same way TT did under the previous PNM government.

“That demonstrates that he doesn’t understand what he has – how it has to be reorganised. So he could talk with the prime minister, they could meet every day, but they can’t know what to do to help Tobago because that is not something the executive can know. It is the society that has to come together to work that out. Talking together is great, but it's not going to help you work out what the country needs or what Tobago needs.”

He said Tobago would suffer as a result of a poorly designed government.

“What we have here is a genuine mess; the state of the country is that we have a real organisational mess on our hands, and we have no monies to pay for the inefficiencies that follows from that.”

He said Tobago would only truly advance when there is constitutional change.

"Within the constitutional framework we’re working, I don’t see Tobago going anywhere...We’re not going to make any progress. We have to change up the constitution to give everybody a chance to participate properly and take responsibility for their own future."