@Miller

To be fair to Maureen Holder she expressed concern about the need to understand how wholesale privatisation will compromise our economy. This is especially true about state agencies charged with delivering a public good. Perhaps her most telling point is the futility of discussing privatisation in Opposition.

Simple economics from GRAN MA mother got father got blessed is the child that got he own. a bird in the hand is worth a thousand in the bush. if OSA have his way eventually we will become beggars looking from the outside in and waiting on outsiders to outline and define our economic viabilty

@Miller

BU’s position is simple on this matter:

How does an aggressive privatisation program – read by 2016 based on BLP plan – compromise our economy given current dynamics.

To what extent is privatisation being driven by economics ONLY?

What is gimmick and what is informed strategy.

To try to turn back that the vast intake of RUM has had on Arthur and the weary and tired look it has left him looking like.

He has just a few days ago received cosmetic and eye surgery overseas to try to reviltalse his old and decrepit and old look, if you look at him in his favorite rum shop you will see that he is no longer wearing glasses.

The cosmetic and eye surgery can do nothing to help his reputation of being corrupt and a vile nasty old man, nor can it change the fact that the Nation has been seen to be under his control after having Kamart Jordan fired with immediate effect because she allowed a publication of articles that were no of his liking, it is a very sad day when THE NATION could allow a rejected exposed as a corrupt leader reach into their offices and fire a staff member who did not do as she was told to do by Arthur.

It is sadder than sad what the National allowed itself to become and the dirt it has become just to please Fred Gollop and Arthur for a political purpose.

i feel ya bess get all the unemployed and school graduates who will not find jobs to start throwing rocks in the sea some where and make more land on the coast to sell off.
you could do it.
make some more shore line to sell to get money for your pockets.
screw the actual island and the people who cares about the mad people sleeping on the street and wondering the roads.
and the starving poor citizens with high school education so the can have bashment ,and wuck up and can not even speak the English language with out cursing every 5 seconds..
encourage the rapping and killing waz up.
cool.
real intelligent.!!!!!!!!!!!!

@ David | November 13, 2012 at 10:44 AM |

Before I respond to the issues raised I would like to see the contents of the speech given by Chris Sinckler in his capacity of Minister of Finance to the BCCI.
Please try to get hold of a copy.

It is really sad that the privatisation issue had to come in the silly season. It is now treated as a political football and it really ought not to be. Privatisation has to be an option because the economy is failing and Gov’t simply cannot continue to finance state entities the same way as before. Change has to come, call it privatisation or what ever but change has to come in some way. The Gov’t has told the people ” no jobs will be cut in the public sector”. That sounds real good and all but you got to ask your self how is that possible. No business, unless they were making huge profits to start with, can sustain employment numbers in recession. For that to happen, salaries have to be cut or you do like the Gov’t and borrow to pay workers. To borrow to pay for labour is simply unsustainable
The privatisation issue is clearly being used by the DLP to distract the electorate and vilify the BLP and it is sad. The DLP is scaring the public by saying what the BLP will do but is not saying what they must do and what has to be done.

Thanks David for terminating individuals who blogs using more than one name. After reading the above comments from party hacks from both parties with the majority coming from the DLP who seems to be versed in gutter politics who continue to ridicule OSA morning and night. We as a Nation cannot improve our lot by the cussing and degradation of others. Let’s start holding hands and put on our thinking caps based on honesty and respect for others to uplift our country, uplift our children, uplift our family structure and make each and everyone proud to be children of this great Nation. Just look at the US election and you will see that Democrats and Republicans always speak about their country as “A great Nation”. Let’s up the ante in our deliberations.

@David
the multiple monikers has made the fluff a little difficult to get through and I agree an issue worthy of debate has been trivialised to “jobs lost” or an “economic catastrophe.” As with Worrel’s one path strategy, both sides need to say what they expect to happen as long as they implement their strategy as opposed to the other. The DLP’s “jobs will be lost” isn’t enough. the BLP’s “citizens will become owners” isn’t enough. What would even be more fantastic, is if someone could actually find the intellectual honesty to wrap the debate around our current economic challenges, and the future economic growth plan

i.e. How does privatisation or non privatisation affect or fit into the government or opposition’s macro economic plan, philosophy and national vision. Alas I’m hearing majority scare tactics and vague pronouncements without any commensurate substance. The electorate deserves better.

Of note, both Inniss and James are speaking of divesting some of the QEH’s services because it is too expensive. What would we call this?

Just Observing

Please stop saying nasty things about Owen Arthur. Stop calling Owen Arthur names . Stop referring to the man in derogatory terms, referring to his physical looks, ohenotype and ohisique. Stop it or else. I am sure that you are not going to like it if we start calling others names that will make you and them uncomfortable. Stop the name calling now and stick to a good argument or simply forget it and stay off the comments page

phenotype and physique

George you welcome to kiss my ass any day seriously, but it would have to be in public … Agreed …? HA HA HA

@ David | November 13, 2012 at 2:27 PM |
“Talking privatisation during an economic slow period. Sad!”

Wrong, David!
You are misreading the scenario or the economic draughts board.
This is not an economic slow period. Which slow period lasted for 4 going 5 years that you know about?
This is a paradigm shift in the way the World trades and conducts economic business. And it’s time we recognize this and work accordingly. Those days that built the local economy and sustained it are over and will not be returning.
This is the start of a new economic age like that of Aquarius. We are either going to learn fast of die early.

Did you DLP folk hear the Finance Minister Christopher Sinckler say there is no fundamental difference between the DLP & the BLP on the issue of privatisation.
Did you also hear him say it will NOT BE PAINLESS.
wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You the irony of the Gov’t saying that “they will not cut jobs” is that some people really REALLY need sending home. There are too many people in the public sector that contribute very little but are assured of a pay when the weeks and months come and it is taxpayers’ money that pay these people.

@ Enuff | November 13, 2012 at 6:19 PM |

That sums it all up! Well put, my friend, well done.
Bajans are just a lot of talk while the Trinis are just taking the initiative and gobbling up what’s available.
Same thing will happen very shortly as long as the likes of Maureen Holder hold sway in determining public political propaganda. That attitude of “that can’t work here in Barbados” would see us being forced to relinquish our sovereignty just to save our very forex ass for another occasion.

It’s really sickening when the likes of Maureen and Maxine McClean keep arguing their economic conservative shit that keeps floating on top and refuses to be flushed to its real destination in 2012.
Could you both ladies and the Anti-Privatization lobby tell us what are the workable alternatives and not just decrying what has been put on the table? We don’t want to hear any crap about improving efficiency as long as politicians have any say or influence in the day-to-day management of these corporations.

patenham | November 13, 2012 at 6:07 PM |
Did you DLP folk hear the Finance Minister Christopher Sinckler say there is no fundamental difference between the DLP & the BLP on the issue of privatisation.
Did you also hear him say it will NOT BE PAINLESS.
wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If Sinckler said this he should lose his seat.
There is wide gulf between D and B on privatization. The Bees are fighting for their political life having made the blunder of revealing their privatazation manifesto which will result in thousands of job losses.
The Dees have no such plans they repeatedly vow not to cut workers from the public sector because of the social dislocation it would bring.
Why in God’s name would Sinckler associate himself with Arthur’s draconian privatization?

I think the privatisation debate has cruelly exposed how empty the BLP intellectual cupboard is.Surely, many had waited to see if there was something new or exciting that would have come from the BLP. No way. Professor Michael Howard and the Barbados Economic Society are not impressed.
The word on the ground is that the workers at many of these statutory corporations and their families are disappointed and alarmed at what they are hearing from Arthur and the BLP.
It seems that once again, Owen gave Mascoll too much clout and Mascoll will help sink the BLP as he did last time with his Hardwood nonsense.

The BLP is bereft of ideas, Mascoll, Owen et al must be on hard drugs to come with the nonsense of workers buying state agencies and social net para statials being sold to the private sector. Poverty and runaway unemployment are the two growth sectors from those actions.

These 1980’s moves are relics discredited long ago. Mascoll and Arthur obviously are frauds. They due a proper wash in tar and feather for rehashing old time garbage as the way forward. The BLP proposals are foolishness if the electorate dont put some warm lashes in them when the bell ring Barbados up the creek paddless.

Politics do indeed make strange bed fellows . I was fortunate to hear that self same Peter Wickham say in reply to a caller on that self same brass tacks programme some time ago that he has no respect for Clyde Mascoll ; HE NEVER READS ANYTHING HE WRITES . I wonder if he has changed his stand on this or if it was the fact that it was Mascoll SPEAKING and not WRITING that could have put Wickham in such intimate conversation with Mascoll yesterday on the programme ? Or maybe it is just simply that Wickham has become such an intellectual prostitute that anything is now possible with him .

i don’t know why anybody would take Peter Wickham seriously in any other country he would been seen as a double agent after the wikileaks and he sure continues to live up to the role with no shame as he sits at the very table of his past adversaries trying to destroy his former friends without shame or guilt in true wikileaks style

the blp plans for PRIVITISATION has already been given a resounding HELL NO! now the question that the BLP must confront is what other viable plans do they have for fixing the ecoconmy ?can one imagine if the PM had ring the bell and these band of vagabonds had win the election with this kind of hidden agenda what barbadians would be facing akin to to an ak 47 . Thanks PM for not ringing the bell ! BTW take as much time as you want for sure there must be more of the same hat tricks the BLP got stashed away in their books of magic and i can;t wait to hear more of the same coming from the BLP and their new economist PETER WICKHAM> don’t make me laugh. This is too good to be true

@ David | November 14, 2012 at 6:08 AM |

I must admit that the BLP has been a bit too ‘honest’ and forthright in its privatization agenda.
The DLP on the other hand are singing from the same Privatization hymn sheet but mumbling and muffling the lyrics by its chief choir boy on the old Radio diffusion set: “THERE IS NO FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE BLP & THE DLP ON PRIVATISATION.”

We want to hear from the other members of the DLP choir on what are the real differences between the BLP brand of Privatization and the one that they the DLP snake oil salesmen will be forced to sell one day coming soon as serious economic castor oil.

I would advise the BLP to make a few amendments to their Privatization agenda strategies.
First, do not make Mascoll a popular face and driving force behind this agenda. Let him stay in the game but primarily in a technical role as researcher and number cruncher.
Let Ms Mottley be the face since she comes across as more ingenious and not disingenuous.
She has the governance experience and practical insight into the workings of the machinery of government. In addition, she has the requisite national appeal to sell her vision for change and to motivate both grassroots groups and the business community.

The BLP needs to let ‘honesty with the people’ be the guiding light but must forge and fashion its message in a way as to not scare the electorate in the same hypocritical manner the DLP is doing. Tell the people what lies before the nation Barbados if we do not change now.
The BLP must put the privatization ball back into the DLP avoidance court and demand that the DLP tell the people what has to be done to save the economy of this country from collapse in 2013. Do not allow the DLP to push the negative side of the privatization agenda like it ‘can’t work in Barbados’ or the BLP brand and policies would hurt the poor, etc.

The alternative to privatization or yearning for the status quo ante will hurt not only the poor but would trigger the collapse of the entire economy in the coming months.

Crunch time is just around the corner. Mark my words, David!

@ Bush Tea | November 14, 2012 at 7:47 AM |
“Bushie knows of only one person with the capability to lead such a mission…..and he belongs to another Party…. The BBE party.”

Bushie, you keep forgetting that the only way to get to Heaven is through death. And we all know that you don’t have suicidal tendencies although you do display signs of having intellectual pipe dreams and political nightmares.

The only way you would want to go Heaven on this Earth is if island gal and ac are thereto please you; but we all know they are not virgins.

You sound as if you plan to do a Jim Jones to bring heaven to the garden of Eden aka Barbados.

It is clear to me that people like wickham, onions, miller and enuff, dont understand the role state egencies play in barbados’s development. To privatise such agencies would mean greater unemplyment, The private sector has no social commitment to tis country’s deveoplement all the businessman. can see is the all mighty dollar like people like Money Brain and Romney.

This privatision would end up the same way as Romney run Bain Capital, get rid of the workers they are only to see seen as commodities. Whar we need to thinking about is how to make state agencies productive, like carry the staff required for the agency to at least break even or make a smalll profit for it continues existence.. The people must demand that audited reports be produced on time and those in charge be held responsibe be fired.

Bajans should . at all cos,t resist any attempt at privatissation, this concept should not be driven by politicains who would amass huge fortunes as we are quite aware how corrupt businessmen the world over operate. Just look at how the contract for the prison was awarded. Who benefitted from that project even though Prime Minister Arthur trying to fool Barbadians that he had no hand in the decision making process. I am stupid, so I beleive him.

The Airport and the seport are not profit losing business so why have they entered the equation. Before theis argument is moved forward, Owen and Mascoll need to tell us what happened to the Gems project and what loss we have accrued over the years relative to those hotes. Who would value the assets and what will prevent the buisiness communty from having fronts to acquire the assests. I await furhter discussions on this matter.

Barbadians should not be fooled by this Peter Wickham. He is looking for consultancy work and more wikleak information might come out on him. How can you be a traitor to you coutry. He cannot be trusted full stop. He is now a paid lobbyist for the blp and the moneyed group who want to get their hands on state assets and milk the country. The Barbados National Bank is a classic example, it was not making a loss and it was strategically placed to influence the finacial sector now what has happened. Hope we done have a fiasco like Almond Beach which was sold to the privated sector and now its demise impacts significantlyy on our tourism sector.