Roget calls for boycott of ‘one percent’ businesses

Addressing the union’s 78th Annual Conference of Delegates at Paramount Building, Circular Road, San Fernando on Friday evening, a fiery Roget said workers had to understand the “nature of the battle” saying the elite in society had built their empires on the backs of the working class.

“But who are these elites? You see, if we were not paying attention or in case we did not know, they are now so emboldened, that they have stepped forward to identify themselves as the smallest group, but the most powerful group, some 5,000 people that has total control over the rest of us,” Roget said, “So elitist they are, that in the comfort of their own private enclaves, the discussion is how they are the Starbucks of the Caribbean.

But wait, if they consider themselves the Starbucks of the Caribbean, then what names do they give the rest of the citizens, the descendants of slaves and indentured labourers, the ordinary working people, the poor and the vulnerable. What are they calling us?” Roget asked. He said the elites had boasted about having some one hundred and twenty businesses throughout Trinidad and Tobago which were being supported by the working class.

“Let us identify these businesses. Where are these businesses throughout Trinidad and Tobago? Where are these businesses that trade under different names? As workers we use our hard earn dollars every day to support them against us. We must identify all of these businesses and begin a massive boycott and show them the power of the people, the real power of the rest of us,” Roget said.

He also addressed the recent departure of former Petrotrin chairman Professor Andrew Jupiter saying Jupiter had been “hounded” out of office as he had shown his willingness to work with the union to ensure that the company was able to compete in the international market.

“Despite the initial progress made by beginning to turnaround production and start the process of cleaning up corruption in the company, the government was not satisfied that their people was in place, and therefore they hounded the chairman out. And now we are hearing of their choice of chairmanship, a name with a proven track record of failure and questionable dealings with contractors,” he said.

He said the union would not accept the privatisation of Petrotrin, the retrenchment of any Petrotrin worker or the leasing out and farming out of Petrotrin’s acreage to “friends, family and financiers of the government.”