Dookeran: Crime will hurt economy

ST AUGUSTINE MP Winston Dookeran warned that if crime in Trinidad and Tobago is not managed, it could spell economic gloom for the forseeable future but could not predict whether or not the war in Iraq would adversely affect the country’s economy.

Addressing a San Juan Businessmen’s Association (SJBA) dinner in Trincity on Thursday night, the United National Congress (UNC) MP said: “ We should hold accountable for public policy purposes, Government’s economic strategy. It is essential for us as a nation to keep close watch on economic strategy because in the final analysis, if a social system as we have is in so much turmoil on the crime scene and so many scenes, and we are not supported by a strong economy we could end up with a recipe for chaos.”

On the impact of the Iraq war on the local economy, Dookeran stated: “On balance however it would seem to us that the immediate impact of the war is not likely to advance the cause of Trinidad and Tobago nor will it work contrary to our own economic fortunes.” He explained that increases in the price of energy commodities, the manufacturing sector’s ability to penetrate the wider Caribbean economy, terms of trade, stability of foreign exchange rates and the sustainability of public finance over the medium term hold the answer to this question but “the answer I will not venture to give”.  Dookeran added that with uncertainties hanging over the economies of the United States, Europe and the Caribbean, it was unclear whether or not a global economic recession was on.