2019 Budget -A Time for ALL Good Citizens to Pause
Budget day: Wednesday, March 20. Prime Minister Mia Mottley will deliver her first Budget on March 20, 2019.
Without doubt the 2019 Budget will be interesting not only for the pundits, for the masses as well, who for the first time are witnessing a Barbados in the grip of economic and social turmoil NEVER experienced in our history. The political partisans as if trapped in a time loop will forever be debating -who to blame, B or D. The blogmaster and sensible others respectfully suggest we need to take a long hard look at the image in the mirror.
We have allowed a burgeoning political class to hold a people and country to ransom while we stood by and applauded. The lack of people participation in government in the last 25 years has given birth to the current state of things. A dysfunctional system will never generate the desired result.
There has been a heavy focus and expectation by Barbadians that monetary and fiscal policies of government represent a panacea to the many challenges which confront us. If youth employment is 24% how does one justify an allocation of 3 millions dollars to the BLOCK program being promoted by Minister of Youth and Community Empowerment, Adrian Forde? The young people on the BLOCK is one of the symptoms how the society is failing the people. Our inability to create opportunities for our people. Our inability to repair, fix and grow and build
Barbados is navigating uncharted waters. The budget will be debated this week with token opposition. Another dysfunction we are grappling. We have a people still hoping for the usual Budget handouts from government notwithstanding the deep economic hole we continue to find ourselves.
One of the greatest disappointments in the post 24 May 2018 period is that we have not been able to reach a national consensus on a way forward. A view from the idealist perhaps.
If we read the political leaves of the 30-0 result the electorate almost to a man determined the DLP was an incompetent government. We have the BLP incumbent and although commonsense suggest the government needs more time, we have spotted a legacy behaviour by the political class which serves to stoke the apathy latent in many of us.
As vivid as the imagination of a child the blogmaster – try as he might- is unable to see the flicker of light at the end of the proverbial tunnel. Bear in mind the cracking of the economic juggernaut requires a parallel effort in the social sphere. There is corruption, rising crime, an irrelevant justice system, a scant regard for the environment etc.
Our strategies must be holistic.
Participation must come from all of civil society.
We must commit to re-engineering our thoughts, words and deeds.
The mantra now and in the future must be sacrifice from everyone for the good of ALL.
If Barbados is to rise, we have to park the noisy adversarial ethos political talking heads and partisan supporters revel and earn pennies from. The final say – in theory – rest with WE the people. Let us power up our collective intelligence to wrest our country from the political class. The hopes and dreams of our children and their children depend on it.
Democracy is the government of the people, by the people, for the people –
-Abraham Lincoln
“A local business that struggling to make up the shortfall that comes with high taxation”
Were you asleep when the business taxes were cut?
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Sit back and watch that despite all the little thing you try to pick at – GDP growth of over 1% for 2019.
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A word to the wise should be sufficient. You know what they say? When the US catches a cold…finish it….
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@ Piece Uh De Rock Yeah Right March 23, 2019 6:47 AM
Dear Piece,
You’re not making friends with your accurate analysis. However, I expressly endorse your analysis. Like me, you are a person of enlightenment, liberation and liberalism. You saw for yourself what avalanche I just kicked off when I listed the five favorite occupations of the Barbadian men. The clerical right-wing conservative establishment rages and Tron laughs 🙂 🙂 🙂
We have to name the cause of the drug war. After 10 years of North Korean state politics, the island is at the end of everything. The middle class must either go begging or emigrate. I won’t say the other thing now before Donna and Simple rave again … 😉 Normal earners can’t even afford a proper purchase in the PriceSmart anymore, let alone in the Massa Supercenter. Selling drugs is currently the only way to build up a capital buffer for even worse times. And given the local circumstances and the clueless population, they will come.
The Prime Minister has a very smart strategy, which she has obviously copied from Louis IX at the Palace of Versailles: You must call all your enemies to your court so that you can monitor them better. This will make them harmless. The Prime Minister can’t let a certain fat aborigine from Black Rock take the lead in the drug business and prepare a coup d’état.
And as far as the dead in the drug war are concerned, I can tell you the following from conversations with diplomats and tourists, even if it is not politically correct at first glance: The foreigners on the island don’t care about the dead as long as the savages shoot themselves. For the foreigners this is just Caribbean folklore and the wild culture of the southerners. Now again some will howl and rage, but the truth cannot be prayed away or drunk away.
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John 2
The smoke and mirror policy was applied to local business
In that where taxes were lowered water rates were increased
The lowering of taxes were meant for business to have a business plan in mind to create growth
However with the increased in water rates and a slowing of the economy the fiscal space given by lowering of taxes would erode somewhat with the increase in the water tax
Bearing in mind that all busineess have to use water
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And to u David
Yes all are aware that govts make promises
However what is being witnessed is a mad horse called Mia. running at brek neck speed to destroy the local economy and devastate bajan household
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“… a mad horse […] running at brek neck speed to destroy the local economy and devastate bajan household.”
What a wonderful poetic description of the DLP administration 2008 to 2018.
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@Peter
Ac is a big part of what is wrong, the inability to reason outside a party loyalty. Did you listen the DLP analysis of the 2019 Budget? Don Marshall, Verla Da peiza, Maxine McClean all table the idea that the DLP policies are the same as BLP BERT minus the IMF. What they forgot to add is that there was a lack of confidence after ten years of dithering with foreign exchange dipping to 300 million.
A word of advice to DLP, she should distance herself from Jepter and that crowd if she is serious about resuscitating the DLP which is on life support.
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@ the New Honourable Blogmaster
You “up in dey, pun a day doing dixie”
You are not making no sport with your remarks and observations and sharing licks left and right.
I watching you carefully.
As it relates to the dead DLP and Verla’s troupe of ***
You mean that in this day and age that they got a cameraman who get vex with a person in the audience and tek a video dat remind me of Oh Death Where is Thy Sting
It like Dark Shadows with Barnabas Collins David!!!
I could not even see Don Marshall features!!
If it was not for de grease in he face, and he white shirt, I would not have located where he was speaking from.
Lawd man you mean dat not a feller ent had no light in de DLP auditorium?
Man i watch dat pup for 4 minutes and i cud not tek up no more!!!
Dem ent got a chance in Hades to even get back one seat
Steupseee!!!
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@PUDRYR
Preferred to avoid being overly critical at this point. One would have thought that a political party looking to emerge from the ashes would have thought about the NEW image it wants to project, message and other elements required in a make over.
Big fail!
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David i am certain that at this point and time many bajans are having buying remorse as to what tgey see happening and what has bern promised to happen by prsent govt in the forseeable future
Not good
As for the Presentation yesterday in regards to video
One can clearly state that no Charles jong was in the background pulling strings or white shadows dictating what should be said
What u saw was an open forum by distinguished and reputable people of barbadian soil who are not of the elitist brand or known to be of prvilege
Enuff said.
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Mariposa
That is exactly why the water tax was increased for businesses, to recover some of the lost revenue from the reduction in taxes.
The businesses will still see an increase in profits because the increase of water rates is not equal to or more than the decrease in taxes. Therefore there is no reason to pass on the increase water rates to consumers.
It cannot not be smoke and mirrors for you. You are just to blind to see!
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John2 i hope you understood the gist of govt recovering revenue loss from the lowering of business taxes
I hope you understand that by increasing the tax rate the consumer would be the ones paying for the tax revenue loss because of a govt policy which benefited businees
As businesss would therfore be forced to increase the price of goods and services to collect their losses resulting from the water tax
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Mari
NO NO and NO
No business will be FORCED to increase any prices.
If a business increase prices it would have to be from other factors like an increase in gas and electric or because they are just plain greedy.
If the reduction I n taxes is saving a business an additional $100 on ever $1000 they make and the water increase is taking back $50 the business is still making $50 more than they were making before the tax cut.
sit back and relax watch the improved economic numbers and upgrades that are coming.
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Mari
How would you recover the lost revenue from the reduction tax on businesses?
Sell the oil terminal and Hilton?
Increase the NSRL?
Remember the DLP were going to cut the tax on businesses and they already had too large of a deficit.
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Hell yes sell the overrated outdated hilton and a gorillaphant that over the years have turned to the NIS for financial help
Yuh think i meking sport
Mia and the IMF said that the civil service was taking a huge financial chunk out of the govt budget and they were expendable
The same theory should be applied to an entity that shows it worth is not worth what govt has to bear financially and the Hilton falls under that catergory
Why must ordinary hard working including poor have to work to keep a financially unstable entity up and running
No govt in the international world would punish their citizens in such a harsh and unrealistic manner
Only in small island backward antiquated islands that does not understand the world of investment
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I had to stop the DLP video when VP started talking about the difference between the B and D treatment of th TB is that the Bs see it as a business while the Ds see at as a social responsibility.
Both parties raised bus fares
The social responsible government aint bus one bus in 10+ years
Ran the fleet into the ground to where you have more drivers that busses.
Have people at the bus stops and bus stand waiting over 4hrs for the social responsibility to come.
Got women walking lonely road form one bust rout to another lookin for the social responsibility never came or is too full when it get in their areas.
Women thumbing rides with strangers.
DLp aint give wages increase, tax break/reverse tax in 10+ years
no kind of relieve to the anyone beside sandles
let me stop here because we all know the rot under the DLP
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The DLP is running the same tired narratives that got them booted from office with a 30 love.
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Every government entity was pulling money from the tax payers, BWA, SSA. TB
Hilton made a profit the last two years.
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You would sell an overated, outdated Hilton that is making 7 mill profit
But in these hard time you going and invest in Sam Lordes.
No wonder the country finances were in such a mess,
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David BU the DLP under the two jokers at the helm ,in my view will be in the wilderness for at least 15 years.These two cannot even win a seat far less a government.As for Fractured your gravy train dry up and Mr Dottin seems to have you nervous,go watch hour pegassus tapes no one wants to hear nothing from you or the ex MP’s.Mariposa you suddenly care about poor people when your party was killing bajans with taxes for ten years i did not hear a peep out of you so like fractured give it a rest as you care nothing about poor people in my view.By the way where is your partner T Inniss has he left you high and dry like CCC?
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@ the Honourourable Blogmaster
You said and i quote
“…One would have thought that a political party looking to emerge from the ashes would have thought about the NEW image it wants to project, message and other elements required in a make over…”
Pachamama the Sojourner beyond this pale said it very simply when he spoke of what the length of the Budget should have been, given the verbal competencies of 3 qualified persons there.
The fact is that you have a group of sheeple in the HoA who were voted in by a bunch of sheeple
The Sheeple outnumber the People!!
Look at Move on Guyana observe their message as they firmly enunciated in that blog here on the site!
Look at their faces!
But more importantly look at where many of them have been educated!
They are coming from a completely different angle that these DLP or BLP troupes.
A Third Party Movement for Barbados would need to have that DNA embedded in them PRIOR TO ANY ENGAGEMENT, or have a facilitator to make that happen for them.
I want you to look at something below
,https://i.imgur.com/OOqOsBb.jpg
Its an item that de grandson posted some weeks ago.
I want you to regard the numbers. Now i will passingly talk about that number and you, being that you know your own numbers, AND THE CLICKS THAT ARE AFFORDED A PARTICULAR BLOG ITEM you would comprehend what 416 means
I going brek it down for the rest
Two nonedescript boxes with the constituency of Mugabe’s St Michael North East attracted 416 views
So de ole man tell de granson to tek it down and here it is again being put back up.
Now you are an IT man so unlike them you would ask the questions
1.why did this meaningless post attract these numbers?
2.why has it doubled the average?
3.And WHO ARE THE VIEWERS?
4.why are they interested?
And your answer as a professional, is echoed in your previous statement which is a “… political party, looking to emerge from the ashes, (AS WELL AS THOSE WHO WERE NOT EVEN IN THE FIRE) would have thought about the NEW image it wants to project, message and other elements required in a make over…” and would have started effecting same
The answer that you have to agree with me on is that THEY ARE NOT READY, nor do they know what to do to win.
THey think that to wind a general election all they have to do is to mount a campaign 4 months before D Day.
So what they are doing now is, coming here to BU, and having a drink at the Spring, but only intoxicating themselves, not drinking any deeper, They have not got a clue as to what they need to do.
But 20 will arise, mark de ole man’s words…
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Hilton Makes 7million and have a debt profile of over 35 million ammm who u fooling..wuh loss muh belly
As for u Lorenzo u were one of those talking about poor people suffering for the last ten years
But now Mia has bushwhacked all and sundry you mout shut
Yuh dirty so and so
Yuh should be ashamed to put pen to paper to scribble jobby to defend this present govt who promised better and in eight months yes eight months not ten years deliver bitter.
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How is this back and forth relevant?
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Because it exposed the lies and bold faced Deceitfulness of present govt
Something which you david would like to remained hushed and hidden away from the public glare
Yuh get my drift ..deal wid it. Ole fowl
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Is sandals a profitable hotel? does it have any debt? if yes how much and how profitable is it?
Just for comparison.
Why sell Hilton that is making profit and can reduce it debt but get involve in Sam Lords which wont be contributing or making a profit for some time to come? Waiting for your logic
why not sell the other treasury draining entities BWA etc that has bigger debt? still waiting
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Hobt does not own Sandals . govt only share in sandals is one of sandals providing jobs
All companies investing in small islands have bern granted concessions under blp as well as dlp
I laughed out loud when i heard Mottley trashing Sandals about agreements with no promises of future guarantees when she singlehandedly gave away millions if taxpayers money known as govt revenue in the form of tax waivers without as much as receiving in return a tofee paper as a thank u note
Now out of political expediency and yardfowl banter shouting to the rafters about shafting Sandals
If i were sandals i would pull up my gorgie bundle and show Mia what time it is
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Right now corporate barbados has started layin off
Even within media houses the axe was given
Now what if Sandal had said to Mia with the economy on its present negative trajectory our board has decided that in the best interest of sandals and its shareholders we cannot guarantee govt that present employees holding jobs with Sandal would continue their position in the future
Yuh see when small island govt begin to think like a Mugabee they
strengthen the hand they mostly depend on and in turn that hand returns a similar favour only with a harsher consequence than govt expected
Mia still can not understand the difference and tge reality between yardfowl banter and diplomacy
Reason why this country in eight months have all but flat lined and our social enviroment in shambles
When Mia should be thinking jobs she goes to arm wrestle a big mcgufgie like sandals.
Wuhloss
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Talking long but not touching the questions I asked.
Stop lying about business started laying off people. I can give you a list of businesses that sent people under the DLP .
so that that lie to some one else that doesn’t know about the companies the “restructured” in the passed 10+ years.
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In ten months this country had one up thick and there are more to come.
In Under the DLP it could not even flat line. All negatives negatives a flatline is way better than any thing that happened under the DLP
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I tired repeating that this govt promised better
However u and other yardies insist on bringing out past govt scorecard as a defense hoisted as to why present govt cant do any better
When the real reason lies in present govt having no preplanned policies in the ten years of planned marches and loud noises
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@Tron March 23, 2019 2:16 PM “I won’t say the other thing now before Donna and Simple rave again.”
I have never raved.
I simply asked if you and others like you are so ugly or incompetent, or both that nobody is willing to have sex with you unless you pay a steep fee.
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@Mariposa March 23, 2019 8:50 PM “If i were sandals i would pull up my gorgie bundle…”
And put hundreds of poor people out of work???
i thought that you were the poor people’s champion.
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Simple
Tell that to Mia who had the poor marching in the midday sun when she was thirsty for the vote
Yes Mia tries to fist fight the big wheel at the wrong time
Guess what her Mcgufgie yardfowl banter aporoach towards Sandal might have cost the country jobs
Not my tongue lashing of Mottley
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This government has been in power for 10 months and had don’t more than the past government done in over ten years.
The past government was in opposition for approximately 14 years, came into power promising better! what was the pre plan they had in the 14 years of opposition?
What in this county Barbados is better then in 2008?
what were they plans? plans that not no worked?
again this government has been in power for only ten months and has already done more good for the contry then the dlp did in ten years.
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@ the Honourable Blogmaster
I think that an item might have slipped into suspense earlier.
I am not sure since I was working on another machine.
It was about the emerging from the ashes comment you had made
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” As promised, insurance giant Sagicor Financial Corporation has launched the first phase of a multi-million dollar senior citizens retirement village project in St George.
The Estates of St George retirement community is being seen by officials as a vote of confidence and a main earner of revenue for the local economy.”
https://barbadostoday.bb/2019/03/23/sagicor-launches-first-phase-of-multi-million-dollar-senior-citizens-retirement-village/
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@ Hants
Why is an insurance company getting involved in property development, except as a straight investment? Where is the insurance regulator? This is another Clico waiting to happen? Keep an eye on Sagicor’s books. If you have life cover or an annuity with Sagicor, move it now.
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Mia act of yardfowl politics cost barbados economy
Billion dollar offer still available…
The resort, estimated at $800 million and projected to inject more than US$100 million into Barbados’ ailing economy annually, was supposed to get under way in January. But while delivering the 2019 Financial Statement And Budgetary Proposals, Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Mia Mottley said, “We have reached a difficult moment in the negotiations that may result in the project being pulled or stalled.”
Mottley, who last October backed the project and described it as the “light” that was “necessary to bring hope and to help Barbados out of this very difficult set of circumstances”, on Wednesday charged its halt was the result of SRI wanting assurances and guarantees over and above what they had already received. These included exemption from any future taxes for anything, or for any other goods and services that others in the industry were paying over the next 40 years – 25 years in full and 15 through extension.
However, in an exclusive telephone interview, Stewart, whose Sandals Barbados and Sandals Royal Barbados employ 1 100 people, stated that, “we were not asking for more concessions, we were not asking for anything”.
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Asking people today what they think of the budget
They say things gone from bad to worse
Mia took it upon her self to guarantee the IMF that she would meet all the targets for a measly 29million loan agreement using barbadian households as collateral to acess the loan with out a great deal of thought given to the pain and suffering involved
Her mantra of stay the course was all she had to offer the people
Butch asked that govt give assurances so he can secure loans from the bank to build the property
Mia says No.
Meanwhile this govt is of yet to create a growth plan which can provide jobs for the unemployed
Barbados is becoming a drug hell hole as the youth seek alternative ways to finding jobs to feed themselves and family members
Yet Mia find it unto herself to turn her back on a proposal that would guarantee jobs for the people
Go figure
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Read and weep
http://www.afrikanheritage.com/dispensers-of-hopelessness-raining-havoc-on-barbados/?fbclid=IwAR2ORNZ40afyaWQhFvkmIEgUdPlU7oQWcDZ4PD0HfUoh9ZsfdxjvfOBC6eI
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“Why is an insurance company getting involved in property development, except as a straight investment?”
Stupse! Aren’t pension funds being used up and down the UK to finance property development? Here is an example:
http://www.pensions-expert.com/DB-Derisking/LPFA-looks-to-build-on-latest-property-allocation?ct=true
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What can a population expect that abhors hard work and considers itself superior, even though it hasn’t achieved anything for many years? Barbados is broken because the people want it that way. Laziness, arrogance and delusion are the ingredients for the fall of this nation.
Whoever chooses DLP twice in 2008 and 2013 should not be surprised that he now has shit instead of gold in his hands. Take a look at the social background of the former DLP ministers. They were the sons and daughters of shoeshine boys, day labourers and beggars. The lower class just can’t handle money. This rabble should never have ruled the country. Barbados is the perfect example that with a little education you can’t turn a poor donkey into a rich racehorse.
Perhaps it really would be best not to let the broad masses in Barbados vote anymore. The broad masses are unfortunately not in a position to handle money and should better let others decide for them. We should therefore have a serious debate on my proposal to link the right to vote to the level of land tax.
The Prime Minister is fortunately from a better family. She knows the value of the money and now she has to perform a drastic treatment. Only brutal electrocution can bring the dead body of goddess Bim to life.
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“They were the sons and daughters of shoeshine boys, day labourers and beggars. The lower class just can’t handle money. This rabble should never have ruled the country. Barbados is the perfect example that with a little education you can’t turn a poor donkey into a rich racehorse.”
Someone said it is satire and sarcasm, Let me add offensive and not funny.
I have seen a similar idea on FB Barbados and am beh=ginning to wonder where this island is headed to.
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It is just a matter of time before the ministers brek for themselves
Word on the street that the ministers are afraid to go into their districts to face the people and answer questions about the budget
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“They were the sons and daughters of shoeshine boys, day labourers and beggars. The lower class just can’t handle money. This rabble should never have ruled the country. Barbados is the perfect example that with a little education you can’t turn a poor donkey into a rich racehorse.”
So where the hell did BLP trash come from….
….all stepped ouf of the slavery system via foreparents.
,…..,all were educated by taxpayers…..
,…,all got uppity arrogant and robbed the country and people blind…
……all from DLP/BLP got offshore accounts stretching from one end of the earth to the other….while the island remains broke and the people struggling…
,,,,,.translation…..they all stole and mismanaged the people’s money…,and left the island broke….that should be serious cause for concern…to the people….the VOTERS..
There is no difference betwen the miseducated fools of both DBLP….not for the last 60 plus years.,
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Mari
Read and weep at what?
Clearly the author is still weeping from the 30 – 0 licking that you all got in your tails ten months ago.
You all still got lot more crying to do and you all will really bawl in 2023 when you get another indentical beating .
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John2 Isnt it the truth that the dlp got a 30-0 trashing
Isnt it the truth that the people belly now hurting
But a glad uh read the article a very telling tale of what has happened in eight months
The weeping and gnashing of teeth has begun
As noted by many including the ministers who are ashamed to face the said people who voted for them.
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Enuff,
What do you mean by finance?
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Invest in, pay fuh, spend money pon etc, etc, etc.
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Have a bit or hu,our or maybe reality?
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Comparing the ability of the PSVs to operate profitably compared to the Transport Board is not an apples and oranges comparison. PSVs do not operate many long haul and unprofitable routes.
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@ Enuff,
I take it you do not know anything about finance, so I am wasting my time talking to you. Your reply confirms my first impressions of you were correct.
I say again, for the other readers’ sakes, that an insurance company should not be investing in illiquid property development. If other insurance companies in Barbados are ‘investing’ in this model, it confirms the gross incompetence of insurance regulation.
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@Enuff
“Aren’t pension funds being used up and down the UK to finance property development?”
++++++++++
You should pay attention to Hal’s caution Enuff. Pensions are different from insurance in their risk profile. Furthermore the regulatory environment differs between Britain and Barbados… please pay attention to the Clico debacle.
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@Peter
One gets the impression in the absence of details about the project it is not just about property development:
https://barbadostoday.bb/2018/12/19/sagicor-to-begin-first-phase-of-400m-investment-next-year/
We need to hear more although it maybe too late.
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“Enuff March 24, 2019 11:38 AM
Invest in, pay fuh, spend money pon etc, etc, etc”
DON’T TIEF…
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Mari
You continuing where the last DLP administration left off, with them false hope/lying
But you continue
The only belly aching, weeping and gnashing of teeth only happening in Belleville.
What going to happen when you all realize that you are not even “second” party anymore?
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As we have seen – the British were only successful when they were exploiting and oppressing. They were only more brutal and ruthless than others, not intelligent or hardworking. They are no less corrupt than we are. They just happened to develop weapons of mass destruction (judged by earlier standards) and used them to plunder the planet.
They got the jump on us with the gun. That’s ALL!
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I admire the Gov’t for this sleight of hand we were promised new buses little did we know that it meant mini-buses.
Welcome to the new boss same as de old boss.
https://barbadostoday.bb/2019/03/23/minibuses-to-boost-bus-service/
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@Sargeant
The electric buses will take awhile, the garbage trucks are also taking awhile.
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@David
What Hal is trying to point out is that this is not a liquid investment: ie Sagicor cannot recover its investment quickly if it needs to.
Insurance and investment companies need much more liquidity than pension funds for example. The cash needs of pension funds are quite predictable, but insurance and investment companies like Clico or Sagicor can be overwhelmed quite quickly by client demands for withdrawals or by natural disasters which necessitate large payouts.
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@Peter
The point is understood more that you know.
It is a pity Walter has had to withdraw from this forum and we are not able to benefit from his training.
The substantive point is accepted, we need our regulators to be vigilant.
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@PLT
Spot on. Mia should hire you as a consultant.
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@David
Remember the “weeds” that you said was growing in the sidewalk? These weeds are now full grown “cow itch” that we can’t get rid of, when/if the electric buses materialize how will you extract the mini-buses from the routes?
This slippery slope is part of the reason that we are where we are successive Gov’ts allowed the ZR industry to virtually monopolize what should be a public undertaking and now we are seeing the results.
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The point is understood more that you know.
It is a pity Walter has had to withdraw from this forum and we are not able to benefit from his training.
The substantive point is accepted, we need our regulators to be vigilant.(Quote)
What crap. We need good insurance regulation, instead of semi-literate nonsense about the substantive point. Idiot.
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The point of a regulatory regime is to make the corporations in the regulated space vigilant; or failing that, to enforce fail safe conditions by legally inhibiting them from risky behaviors. I do not see evidence that local regulators achieve either objective, but I may be wrong.
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@PLT
Clico.
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“They got the jump on us with the gun. That’s ALL!”
but only after tiefing the gunpowder from China…lol
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mari
“As noted by many including the ministers who are ashamed to face the said people who voted for them”
who the many?
in Barbados today there is an article about the minister of agriculture and mp for st john attending a meeting in gall hill, st john yesterday.
talk about smoke and mirrors?
check the old lady on the bus and mia’s LEC.
but continue, you fit right in with the other 30 liars and thieves.
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On the one hand, Hal has always been big on regulation, and on the other, he reminds us Barbados ‘is a failed state’. How does one regulate in a failed state?
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@Northern Observer,
The state has failed as a result of the failure of regulation. Name an area of state regulation in Barbados and I show you an institution that has failed. The courts?
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Hal
Yes I am duncey, so educate me. What arm of Sagicor Financial Corporation is investing in the retirement village?
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@ Sargeant March 24, 2019 12:14 PM
This slippery slope is part of the reason that we are where we are successive Gov’ts allowed the ZR industry to virtually monopolize what should be a public undertaking and now we are seeing the results.(quote)
this is far fetched, that a govt in the future will probably enforce PSV and impose PSV regulations that some operators in the transport sector may find to unreasonable and withdraw thus allowing the TB to resume some of the space it gave up or was removed from?
Just asking
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The Chairman of the Transport Authority Ian Estwick hinted that a rationalization of routes assigned is coming. Not far fetched at all.
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@ Sargeant March 24, 2019 12:01 PM
(quote)Suggesting that the private PSVs will operate like “a Transport Board bus does”, the Minister said children and senior citizens will travel for free on these branded vehicles. (quote)
When the min says “operate like the TB does”; what exactly does he mean ? The TB is no bastion of punctuality or effectiveness or efficiency. I hope the min is not speak outta both sides of his mouth.
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He means the same concessions offered by public transport will be offered by the PSVs.
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@ Enuff
I think you should sit this one out boss.
You have no idea what you are talking about.
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Dullard
Well educate me nuh!! Tell me why Sagicor should not invest in property development.
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@Enuff
Property development is not a liquid investment: ie Sagicor cannot recover its investment quickly if it needs to.
Insurance and investment companies need much more liquidity than pension funds for example. The cash needs of pension funds are quite predictable, but insurance and investment companies like Clico or Sagicor can be overwhelmed quite quickly by client demands for withdrawals or by natural disasters which necessitate large payouts.
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Insurance companies also cannot depend on only liquid investments to generate an adequate return.
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PTL 1207pm
A company as big as Sagicor should be loaded with reinsurance to cover drawdowns in the two examples that you gave.
Just saying.
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Hey look fuh more strikes
Dancing wid the devil nit as easy as one think.
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@john2 March 24, 2019 4:42 PM
Surely a company as big as Clico should have been loaded with reinsurance to cover drawdowns in the two examples that I gave.
We either learn from history… or we don’t.
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Does anyone know if the deal between Alignvest and Sagicor has been completely?
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John2 i wonder what smoke and mirror the minister used to explain that tax hike in water
Couldn’t have been easy .i await the next month when the agricultural sector make they voices heard
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@PLT
Reinsurance cover will be a good regulatory requirement. But good regulation cannot make a bad investment good. Reinsurers will see the tsunami coming. Property development is not a good investment policy for an insurance company, period.
Let us look at a model asset allocation – 45 per cent in fixed income; 30 per cent in equities; 15 per cent in commercial property; and five per cent each in cash and hedge funds. We can tweak these.
The key from here is going to be asset allocation. Equities to grow the fund, fixed income to meet obligations. Property development has a very small place if the purpose is to stimulate a market (but no more than five per cent in place of hedge funds); if it is to become a landlord it is irresponsible. Clico invested in plantations, Sagicor in retirement homes – madness. Did the regulator approve this ‘investment’?
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By property development I am talking about residential property, not commercial, which is a positive asset..
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PTL
Was it heavy drawdowns that caused the fall of clico?
Just asking/ I really don’t know
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Neither am I saying Sagicor is right or wrong in their investment.
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@Tron March 24, 2019 7:14 AM “Perhaps it really would be best not to let the broad masses in Barbados vote anymore. The broad masses are unfortunately not in a position to handle money and should better let others decide for them. We should therefore have a serious debate on my proposal to link the right to vote to the level of land tax.”
Trying to grab more power for you and yours aren’t you?
Isn’t it the monied classes that phucked up things in spite of 223 years of free labour.
If you can’t make a go of things with the “gift” 223 years of free labour, then you are a LOSER.
And nobody should trust you with a single cent for the next 1,000 years.
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@Donna March 24, 2019 11:59 AM “They got the jump on us with the gun. That’s ALL!”
So true.
The original bad boys of the 17th, 18th and 19th and early 20th centuries
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@ the Honourable Blogmaster @ March 24, 2019 1:50 PM you said and I quote
“…The Chairman of the Transport Authority Ian Estwick (who is said to be, Mugabe’s cousin) hinted that a rationalization of routes assigned is coming. Not far fetched at all…”
Alex Linton who is the Dirctor of the Transport Authority now that the other incompetent Director has gone, promised the same thing to his two former Ministers Jihn Whisper Boyce and Michael Lashey and and and having spent 500,000 in equipment, software, networking and training in ammmm nuff tings including ArcGIS still has not delivered one effing thing.
But then again that is the modus operandi of inferior inferior superiors is it not?
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The electorate will judge this government harshly if they donât move the needle, Mia should be aware. To whom much is given …
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But I thought Alex Linton recently left the Transport Authority?
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@ the Nameless Ones #1
Alex gone?
Thank you for the update.
Why wunna leh he vo doah?
Dig it hard anything to do with underhand licensing practices?
Since you providing de ole man with these updates, tell me if de ole man statement bout de 1/2 million dollar waste he oversaw is a lie?
Ef you continue to help de ole man like dis, I promise not to call you number 1 but say something like the “Cardinal Integer” so people dont think that you is still Mugabe’s piss pot and de udder feller her shyte pot.
Heheheheh
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Look what will get Barbados economy back on track!!
https://barbadostoday.bb/2019/03/24/beekeeping-can-get-economy-buzzing/
Unbelievable !!!
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