Hold hand on firings

THE EDITOR: The recent floods were indeed catastrophic and the nation was left in shock and disbelief at the sheer numbers who lost most if not everything. One has to be in it to feel the pain and helplessness of the flood victims. They may have purchased their household items, either with money saved or borrowed.

The situation worsens when one considers some of the flood victims may have been those who were recently retrenched. To understand their level of sheer desperation, one must first walk in the shoes an unemployed flood victim.

In three years, the steel plant and Petrotrin have closed, leaving thousands without jobs. And to encounter this flooding disaster is beyond the mental capacity and endurance of many. In every organisation, there are lazy workers and they could have been phased out over time. It would seem that God is very sad with the actions of the governance and actions of state boards.

They can make bad decisions but are they answerable to anyone? This flood of tears from the Heavens above is a warning sign that our Lord is unhappy with those who believe that privatization is the answer. I call upon our Ministers to embrace our confused and disorientated citizens who face this disaster without any chance of returning to that level of comfort, pre-flood.

I further implore them to stop all attempts to pauperize our helpless citizens. I beseech our PM to stop all job cuts if it means less pay and less hours per worker. At least one can pack their lunches and look after their family. Intentions of job losses in our public utilities must stop and let God be that defining factor.

Mr LeHunte must have faith as this can move mountains. Senior TSTT workers are being targeted since they are without union protection and sooner rather than later it might be T&TEC or WASA. All solutions must engage the human factor. We are not rich as first world countries where job are readily available.

The answer lies with proper planning and stopping the dependence on energy and oil. What about growing our own food such as rice? Why must bananas be imported from Latin American countries especially with the shortage of forex? Imported food extracts billions from our budget on an annual basis. Diversification is the light beyond the tunnel. Or else our citizens would migrate in large numbers since it appears to some that to privatize is right.

STEVE DOTTIN via email