The extended period of economic stagnation ahead is probably going to be the 1980s all over again and T&T does not yet know what is going to pull it out of the situation this time, Independent Senator Rolph Balgobin said yesterday.
Balgobin made the point in the Senate yesterday during debate on a land acquisition motion. Noting the current economic situation and projections of job losses, totalling 24,000 plus, Balgobin said that may not be the final figure since Government also had make-work programmes. He felt the unemployment figure therefore might be around 17 to 20 per cent. He said there was no economic engine waiting in the wings to take T&T out of oil and gas dependence. Balgobin added: "So we have a situation where we are in for an extended period of economic stagnation and it's probably going to be the 1980s all over again and I don't know what's waiting for us at the end of this...what is going to pull us out this time and this, therefore, is a very challenging time for Government and for T&T."
Considering the situation, he said, compulsory acquisition of land should be undertaken with extreme care, especially where such acquisition affected projects that yielded employment. He said business should be given a "fair shake" in such issues as how land was acquired, since business would be the sector to revive the economy, "not the Government." On what appeared to be an indirect reference regarding current issues involving CNMG this week, Balgobin said it was very important for people's rights to be respected. He added: "Fundamental to any parliamentary democracy and capitalist system would be protection of property rights and religious freedoms and if you have someone who is being persecuted, if they made an expression of what they believe, I don't think that's right.
"And I don't think a person ought to be singled out for cost-cutting measures, when there are billions of over-payments everywhere else. "In the same way someone should not be singled out to have their lands taken because they refused to grease someone's palm." While he said there had been reports of landowners consorting with public officials to manipulate the value of the lands to be acquired, Balgobin said another type of corruption could happen. He said people with knowledge of project designs could go to landowners and tell them their properties could be put within the design and acquired if they did not get something out of it.
Balgobin said he had seen one situation which was willfully altered to include certain lands and the owner was approached by a public official who demanded a piece of the land. Balgobin said the official told the owner the land could be put in the name of a relative of his in Miami. He added: "This is a very dangerous kind of operation that needs to be managed so that we can be assured that public officials, including elected officials, don't get involved in activities that can pervert or corrupt compulsory acquisition of land." Senate leader Subhas Panday asked Balgobin if he wished to confidentially give the information on the alleged corruption issue of which he had spoken. Balgobin said he certainly was and already had done so.