UNC Chairman Lee : What are the exciting possibilities for citizens to gain from Petrotrin?
In his address to the nation the Prime Minister has asked the Population if they are “up to the task of grasping these exciting possibilities” as it relates to future decisions on Petrotrin’s future.
The nation must now demand a clarion response to what are these possibilities and whose best interests do they serve?
The tone of the Prime Minister’s address could not have been clearer, as a matter of fact a brighter picture could not have been painted which perfectly depicts Government setting up of the right scenario to Privatise Petrotrin .
It is quite unfortunate if this is the case that the Prime Minister chose to speak in economic parables without being upfront with the Population. Terms such as restructuring, burden on the economy, as well as “give ourselves the best chance to succeed” coupled with his signature stroke of scaring the population with the IMF strongly suggests a radical plan with respect to Petrotrin’s Future which can be interpreted as Privatisation.
The big questions arising out of all of this are ” Was Government Breaching and exploiting the Collective Bargaining mechanism with the Union to create the Perfect Storm and justification for such moves ?” as well as “What is the view of the OWTU ?”
As with any form of restructuring or Privatisation which seems inevitable given the undertones of the PM’s address and events of the past week which could be described as perfectly stage managed, the major concerns must be for those who will be directly impacted which are the employees. So one must question will these possibilities include loss of jobs which has been a norm under this Rowley led Government while what are the economic ramifications surrounding these future changes. There must be transparency, accountability and proper national planning with any massive change as it can severely impacted the social and economic framework of our nation