How could the DLP be allowed to get away with such a vulgar and horrible crime against Barbadians and the region? Where is the social justice and accountability? Has Barbados become a banana republic and a place where the innocent pays and are punished for the atrocities of the wicked? Because of the DLP, the whole world now thinks regional leaders and Governments are incompetent at economic leadership and management!
Barbadians have to be candid about what has happened and why this country now finds itself in this sorry mess and perilous state, where thousands of relatives; friends and neighbours (fellow Barbadians) are being oppressed and subjected to an unknown period of human suffering and a life of poverty, with no light or hope – in the DLP’s tunnel. There has to be a point beyond which, failure to accept sound, well-reasoned advice, from experienced professionals, including those who have “successful-actual on-the-job experience” – constitutes criminal negligence.
Very few would deny that this-failed-DLP-Government’s expenditure fiasco is caused primarily by its “flawed fatted calf doctrine and political entitlement programme,” which the country is now finding-out – has resulted in the reckless over-employment in the public sector, by stealth, over the past six years.
It did not interest the DLP that its secret was bound to come to light and that it would have a devastating knock-on-effect since it would also drive the deficit, in circumstances where such would neither stimulate nor stabilize the economy. It was long after the damage was done that the Finance Minister was forced to admit that the DLP’s flawed policy (my emphasis) is causing Government to borrow $14m a month, to pay 7,000 casual workers.
It should have been foreseeable that such reckless borrowing (not to build productive capacity) would incur high interest cost and an increase in the National debt, without justification. We then had the vulgar printing of money by the Central Bank of Barbados, which in turn – is putting pressure on the foreign exchange; causing investor and consumers to get glittery and may have even been a factor in the capital flight from Barbados. All along the Opposition was raising the red flag and sounding the alarm but nobody – not even the unions or the electorate, listened or was interested.
This is serious! Because, this-failed-DLP-Government ignored sound advice and persisted with its ‘fatted calf doctrine’ and political entitlement programme. It then recklessly mismanaged the economy and borrowed like there was no paying back, even borrowing more in four (4) years than the BLP did in fourteen (14) but, unlike the BLP – with nothing to show! It is now borrowing to pay-back money it already borrowed and to prop-up the foreign reserves it squandered. Having created a such a horrible mess (the same DLP that does not know what it is doing) now wants the country to make more haphazard sacrifices that will not achieve any sensible outcome. Barbados is suffering because of a crisis of confidence and the DLP’s weak economic and political leadership is to blame.
This country has to be honest: The DLP has been getting it consistently wrong and if it is not reeled-in – it will hurt even more people. It is causing Barbados to plummet from being ‘the #1 Developing Country in the world to becoming a failed society.’ There will be no ‘better or brighter tomorrow’ with the DLP, as the Government! If it cannot even clean-up its mess, how can the DLP be expected to “fix Barbados” or make this country better?
Everybody knows that the DLP makes bad decisions; exercises poor judgment and continues to introduced flawed policies, on a sustained basis – often achieving the opposite of what was intended. As an example, it introduced policies to reduce the deficit but it increased. The rate of poverty also increased. Unemployment did not come down, instead more ended-up on the bread-line and thousands and being sent home, all now.
Even “IF” it had the capacity to, (and nobody believes it does) it was too busy complaining, making excuses and wasting time, to conceptualise viable, economic policies that would have ensured trade and fiscal sustainability. It therefore caused the country to be downgrade to ‘junk;’ a loss of consumer and investor confidence; a capital flight from Barbados; a number of businesses to close or to simply leave Barbados and set-up elsewhere. The DLP is therefore, totally responsible for this perilous fiscal crisis, which now grips this country.
But it gets worse: The DLP acted as though a FETE was a substitute for sound leadership! And so, it did very little (if anything at all) to reposition our economic enterprises and sectors to accommodate changes in international trade law and relations. This-failed-DLP-Government is responsible for the social, economic and political instability in Barbados. Imagine! A crisis and a brawl is raging between the unions and the Cabinet and nobody to call a cease-fire – even as the social partnership implodes!
Thousands are sent home but not one of them can appeal to the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister or the Central Bank Governor – to intervene on their behalf – like a pal did recently, when he had a problem! Workers cannot appeal to the Labour Minister; the Prime Minister or the union because they are all holding the smoking gun! This is a real change because workers had a lot of friends before the February General Election. None now! The DLP is the Government again!
Because it is reckless and in disciple, the DLP continues to spend more than it has and in circumstances where that spend, neither stabilizes nor stimulates the economy. It is causing the debt to increase with nothing to show. It has caused the NIS Fund to be in a sad state, where it could be broke in nine years and will put it under even greater stress, because of ‘the DLP’s current labour massacre or it forcing thousands of workers on the bread-line – an activity, which has now become the new core-business and core-competency of this-failed-DLP-Government!’
Every time the DLP gets it wrong, it punishes and harasses the country for more taxes. It triggered a meltdown of the economy with a 77% diesel price increase and made matter worse with an inflation budget, which snatched over $108m from the pockets of Barbadians. Not satisfied, it tried every year thereafter to tax its way out of a recession and to use a fiscal instrument (flawed taxation policy) to ease the pressure on the balance of payments. Its thinking was; ‘if Barbadians have less to spend then Government would not have to spend foreign exchange to import, to replace what consumers purchased.’
This failed-DLP-government spent all the money it had and more and then printed more. In fact, this DLP did all that, including causing the economy to collapse and the country to be downgrade to junk and to be now adrift; in danger of becoming a failed-state, while staring a devaluation in the face. And yet, it purports to have some moral authority to send home thousands, while being serious about keeping their job and expect to be allowed to loitering long enough, to also qualify for pension – so they can continue to live comfortable, while the thousands it placed on the bread-line and the rest of the country – suffer. There is something fundamentally wrong with such vulgarity!
There is no one else for the DLP to blame and Rating Agencies have already cautioned about a further downgrade if it continues printing money! The only thing worse now, would be for the DLP to import tear gas; announce a “curfew” or go to Parliament for a supplementary for funds to provide for ‘armed security for DLP Ministers,’ who now fear and feel they have to be protected from the very constituents they are suppose to represent but want to make sure they lose no sleep over, having agreed to fire them.
Bajans! Know your history! There is a reason why Bussa is a National Hero! Why Clement Payne is a National Hero! There is a reason why people like Nanny Greg are in our history books: do not dishonour or respect the memory and legacy of your ancestors! The world will laugh at you if you continue to allow yourselves to be savaged by sheep!
How can an entire country sit on its hands and allow an incompetent Government; a bunch of people who seem to be making-it-up as they go; people who after six (6) years still have their training wheels on – to cause all this unprecedented level of “barbaric butchery,” pain, dislocation and unjustified human suffering; to create such an economic cess-pool and unnecessary mess. I mean – even! Even at a time when Nelson Mandela was in the news? Nelson Mandela of all people! The symbol of symbols for black people and those who oppose oppression everywhere! And yet! Barbadians, the unions, civil society organizations, the private sector and people who love this country – all sit on their hands and watch, as an unproductive; incompetent DLP Government, gets it wrong AGAIN and punishes thousands of innocent people it recently gave a solemn oath to – by literally firing them – when it is the DLP that should be fired for its cold betrayal, deceit and lies: lies that the country is “stable,” which would have been a factor of the electorate’s trust but a weapon of mass destruction in the DLP’s betrayal.
You know: “Alice” got bored listening to her sister tell her about the history of the world. Instead, her bright idea was to chase a rabbit wearing a white waist-coat, which passed her saying it was late for an appointment – down a rabbit hole! Stupidity is not an asset, neither is it a flattering commodity to display publicly in Barbados or anywhere.
Long before February 2013, it was clear that ‘the DLP is bad for this country and that is was and remains the crisis Barbados faces.’ Even people who have never even passed near a Primary School or no school at-all – could not have imagined that given all of what had happened (some outlined above) despite all of the warnings – that the DLP could still have won the last election! But it did!
Nobody is saying that the electorate is “stupid!” But that the DLP cannot be trusted. The danger of trusting the DLP was known as far back as the late 1980’s and long before the 2008 general election, when it again promised (on that occasion) to do a number of things within the first 90 and 100-days if elected, despite having argued all along – that the economy was in crisis and that the debt was too high.
Still, the DLP has long held the view that ‘anybody can be bought, once the price is right!’ But it was and remains foreseeable that an incompetent man, who gives you $500 (whatever the reason) will still be incompetent long after you have spent that money – even if you were not living in Barbados, where the-cost-of-living is high!
There is only one way, that such a critical fact would have escape anybody or why anybody would be lured by a moment of pleasure but fail to see the accompanying five years of pain and oppression. But this is Barbados, and if the DLP calls elections tomorrow, it would not surprise some – if it won all 30 seats – even though there being absolutely no justification for it to win even one, especially since the DLP has now become the single biggest threat to the stability of the Barbados dollar.
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