I wonder, Mr Prime Minister...

I wonder if the Prime Minister would have noticed the deplorable conditions of the terminal buildings, where people have to wait to board the ferry and the kind of seating arrangements they endure doing so.

I understand the trip was delayed by 45 minutes, and I wonder if he had to sit there not knowing what was going on, since no one bothered to inform the travellers about the delay, or did so at some point later than the scheduled departure.

I wonder if he received a complimentary bottle of water, at least.

I wonder if he could relate to three and more hours of this situation as we have now become accustomed to.

I understand that it may have been raining in Port of Spain. Did the Prime Minister have the unpleasant task of walking to the ferry in the downpour since there is no sheltered walkway to the vessel, or negotiating the slippery gangway to get on board as so many of our older folk would have to do? I understand also that he mingled with the passengers, getting their views on the ferry service and no doubt catching up on some good Tobago ole talk.

But I wonder if he noticed the cramped conditions of the seating arrangements and the unhealthy conditions of the washrooms on the vessel, in spite of the tremendous work done by the crew to keep these in good condition.

Certainly he experienced the crawl of the fast ferry, which we are advised was operating on only three of its four engines, one of which blew out on the way.

That meant that the usual three-hour journey would have gone to five, giving the Prime Minister enough time to fully experience the gut-wrenching rocking of the boat making its slow way through the Bocas, and to observe the many people vomiting their guts out, trying desperately to reach the washrooms in safety.

I tip my hat to Rowley as I cannot recall in my limited knowledge of any Prime Minister being brave enough to travel on the ferry between Trinidad and Tobago.

We know of course of those who did the helicopter trip on a regular basis.

That he made the decision to make this journey at the height of all the controversy surrounding the sea bridge and to mingle with the irate travelling public suggest to me that Rowley wanted to have first-hand, experiential knowledge of the woes of the sea bridge, so that he can take appropriate action to eradicate these issues once and for all.

So, like the rest of TT , I sit in anticipation of a swift solution to the problems of the sea bridge. Clearly, based on his actions on landing in Tobago, the Prime Minister must have been terribly disappointed, angered even, at the state of affairs. I empathise with the truckers who felt snubbed by his response, but recuperation from the ordeal must have been uppermost in his mind.

Once again Rowley has broken ground and has demonstrated that indeed he is a man of the people.

But I sit and I wonder...

He is not superman.

He is a geologist and not a magician. So I know that he will once more have to depend on the Port Authority to perform the herculean task of fixing this ongoing, overbearing situation, which is costing and hurting Tobagonians in so many ways.

Yes, I wonder... Would his trip be in vain?

GARVIN COLE Tobago