Too late to court sugar workers

THE EDITOR: I find it distressing that Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj should now seek to further impose harsh and unusual punishment on the psyche of retrenched sugar workers by creating an expectation that will not come to pass. Mr Maharaj knows that his rhetoric is more than nine months too late. He is, in the proverbial expression, closing the stable door after the horses have bolted. If, indeed, Mr Maharaj was serious about fighting for sugar workers to retain their jobs, or receive an enhanced Voluntary Separation Employment Plan, he would have told them nine months ago, like the All Trinidad Sugar and General Workers did, not to sign up for the PNM’s VSEP. He didn’t. Or, Mr Maharaj could have joined with the union and argued against the PNM action when the union took the matter before the Industrial Court. And, of course, he could have enlisted the support of the same international Human Rights organisations and the US Congress in that struggle for sugar workers.

It would have been legitimate then, for Mr Maharaj to organise the so-called massive day of solidarity to make an intervention that would have forced the PNM to re-think their inhumane plan against sugar workers. But Mr Maharaj chose to remain silent and instead kept a hands off approach. You are very late, Mr Maharaj. And I ask whether you had a specific agenda for this policy of silence. Is it because you did not want to interfere with the mistaken PNM strategy that by destroying the sugar industry you destroy the UNC’s base. Or is it that you reckon that the time is now appropriate for you to advance that PNM strategy. On both counts you are wrong! Taking the Caroni issue to the courts, the Human Rights organisations and the US Congress now is a lot of misguided foolishness. It is rubbish and a waste of time. My question to Mr Maharaj is, do you reasonably believe that the Manning Admini-stration will listen to any objections lodged by Human Rights organisations or the US Congress. Or, do you reasonably believe that the US Ambassador in Port-of-Spain will intervene on behalf of sugar workers? Come on, Mr Maharaj, get real man! What I find sad about Mr Maharaj’s ranting and raving with a miniscule of retrenched workers was that when ATSGWTU made the point that the severance calculations were incorrect, he said nothing.

Some of those same workers in Mr Maharaj’s audience ignored the union’s advice and proceeded to sign up for the same incorrect VSEP calculations. For the records, the union did take up the matter with the company. Then, why today is Mr Maharaj blaming the union for not raising the matter. Surely it amounts to political mischief. The fact is the union did raise these red flags long before Mr Maharaj did. The point must be made that the union was forced to capitulate on its stand to hold out on the VSEP after workers went ahead and signed up. Clearly the union had no alternative but to go along to ensure that all workers benefitted from the enhanced offer. I have no problem if Mr Maharaj wants to develop a political base in central Trinidad. That’s his democratic right. But, please do so with honesty and truth. Don’t prey on the distress of others for personal and selfish gains. At this stage, the retrenched sugar workers don’t need any pie-in-the-sky hope that they will get back their jobs or that their VSEP packages will be further enhanced by the PNM. That will not happen! What the retrenched workers need is advice on how best to invest the severance payments and how best they can re-tool and re-train themselves to enter the labour market. Indeed, both ATSGWTU and the Hindu Credit Union have developed strategies that would ease these retrenched Caroni workers into a life after the destruction of the sugar industry. They must be applauded because, really, that is what matters now!

HARRY PARTAP
MP Nariva