This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Dear Dr. Rowley
Congratulations on your 31st month as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
I refer to the following statement in the PNM’s 2015 manifesto:
“Our approach to governance in our next term will be data based, scientific, holistic and evidence driven, paying due attention at all times to the need for compassion, sensitivity and the respect for the rights and freedoms of all citizens in all matters of state.
I am writing to request an update on your plans for the re-structuring of the Central Statistical Office or the creation of a replacement entity.
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Dear Dr. Rowley
Congratulations on your 30th month as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
My sincere congratulations to you on facilitating the work of the Equality Opportunity Commission and the launch of the “Guidelines to Sexual Harassment in the WorkPlace”.
I take this opportunity to remind you that the next important milestones are the Legislation and the implementation of Sexual Harassment Policy at all State Enterprises and Ministries.
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Congratulations on your 29th month as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and may you enjoy a “controversy free” Carnival 2018.
I recently witnessed an attempt to intimidate a female driver by one of the armed persons on a vehicle at the tail end of your entourage. This incident occurred in the vicinity of Queen’s Royal College and was witnessed and discussed by a few runners who commented that such a level of aggression was not necessary.
This conversation reminded me that general behaviour in Trinidad is now typified by aggression, ill manners and a general impoliteness. May I suggest that your office stage a monthly “Common Courtesy” Day beginning on March 21st which is a designated day of the year. (See: https://www.daysoftheyear.com/days/common-courtesy-day/). I am suggesting a monthly day because it will encourage us to focus on little things like saying thanks or holding the door for the person ahead of us and a range of other impolite behaviours which are becoming the norm.
The country and indeed your government is suffering from inertia and you are in an ideal position to fix this. As your election tag line implored: Let’s do this!”
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Congratulations on your 28th month as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Here are 12 suggestions for your government for 2018:
Rationalize our public holidays in order to positively impact productivity.
Publicize the performance appraisal system for the public service so that citizens know how public servants are judged with regard to performance delivery.
Appoint a Minister of Communication to ensure that your government’s performance is positively highlighted and brought to the attention of the citizenry.
Have the Regional Corporations develop and implement a 6 month plan for creating “walkable cities” in their Boroughs starting simultaneously in April 2018.
Appoint a “Social Innovation Think Tank” to report within 9 months on key social innovations projects which can be implemented across the country.
Ensure electronic transactions become the norm at Government and State institutions.
Begin the obesity reduction programme with our protective services especially those in leadership.
Place a moratorium on the approval of new franchises.
Mandate Rituals and Starbucks to use 10% local coffee and increase that usage to 60% within 5 years.
Place a moratorium on the importation of cars. (Effective February 2018, Singapore banned the addition of cars on its roads to reduce the permitted vehicle growth rate to 0%.)
Implement a programme to ban the use of disposable plastic cups and plates. (In September 2016 France became the first country in the world to ban disposable plastic cups and plates. A new French law will require all disposable tableware to be made from 50% biologically-sourced materials that can be composted at home by January of 2020.)
Mandate that garbage be separated in homes for collection by specially assigned trucks on specific days.
The country and indeed your government is suffering from inertia and you are in an ideal position to fix this. As your election tag line implored: Let’s do this!”
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Dear Dr. Rowley
Congratulations on your 27th month as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Commendations to you and Caribbean Airlines Limited on the bold step of introducing the penalty for any change of flights on the air bridge.
The issue of sexual harassment has taken centre stage on the national human resource agenda. I am joining with other groups to ask you to take leadership on the implementation of Sexual Harassment policies throughout the entire public service and State Enterprises.
AnsaMcal has an excellent policy which I am sure they would be willing to share with you. Additionally gender sensitivity training would be needed in conjunction with the roll out of the policy.
I am suggesting the roll out of the gender sensitivity training and policy coincide with the celebration of “International Women’s Day” on Tuesday 8th March, 2018.
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Dear Dr. Rowley
Congratulations on your 26th month as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
Recent activities have caused me to reflect deeply on the inappropriate use of the Priority Bus Route (PBR). (My running group has been training on the PBR.)
Here are 4 situations which need urgent attention:
Private citizens have encroached on the road reserve and built buildings, garages, walkways, businesses and in one case an attractive 5 ft hedge. It means that they are using the PBR to access their homes and businesses. This simply adds to the congestion problem along the east/west corridor.
There is very little policing on the PBR so drivers use it as their private race track. (I have witnessed this several times on either Saturday or Sunday mornings from 5:00 am.)
Maxi drivers routinely wait at traffic lights for passengers causing obstruction at intersections.
The arrival of a PTSC bus at any stop is like a suspense movie. An easy fix would be the development of an “Ap” or installation of signs at the bus stops advising commuters of the arrival of the next bus even if it is in an hour. This will be of tremendous value to our “over 60” citizens who choose public transportation.
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Dear Dr. Rowley
October 7th marked two celebrations: your 25th month in office and the seventh edition of TedxPortofSpain.
On our part TEDxPortofSpain has provided a non-partisan platform for ideas worth spreading and we can boast of having 60 talks on line by Trinidadians about Trinidad. We have had more than one million views to date. If we are unable to continue staging the annual conference, our legacy would be there in perpetuity.
On the other hand, your legacy after 25 months in office is illusive. I note that the report from the Economic Development Advisory Board (EDAB) has been posted on the website of the Ministry of Planning and I know that Officers from the Ministry are on the media talking about vision 2030. Those are commendable efforts however they are no replacement for a clearly articulated vision by the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago. They lack the power of office which only you can add.
In the absence of a clearly articulated vision by you, the population will continue to be uncertain. I quote the biblical statement, 1st Corinthians, “If the trumpet gives an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself for battle?”
My best wishes for your 26th month in office and I do hope that the tide will turn in your favour and that soon you will provide us with a vision which we could all follow.
This is one of the letters which I have written to Prime Minister Rowley over the past 5 years.
Dear Prime Minister,
Congratulations on your 2nd Anniversary as Prime Minister of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago.
May I commend your government on the aggressive role being played by the “Joint Select Committee” to investigate the details of the sea bridge fiasco and suggest that your office move as aggressively to demonstrate to citizens your courage to take appropriate action which will arise upon completion of this exercise.
I am but one citizen but data tells you that I am NOT one voice. The three things which citizens clamour are Accountability, Collaboration and Transparency.
Yours for our country! Dennise Demming (Mrs.) MBA, BSc., Cert-Mass Comm Citizen
In light of your statement, I am asking our Government to urgently develop a policy to provide free feminine hygiene products for low income women and girls.
The City of Aberdeen in Scotland recently made these items free for low income women and girls, with very positive results. You can ask your wife and daughters about the cost of feminine products in our supermarkets and pharmacies .. they are not only expensive, but prohibitively so for many women and girls. Many of our girls miss days of school each month, as they cannot afford these essential products.
Please live your words, and do something positive for the women and girls of our nation.
Thank you
Yours for our country!
Dennise Demming (Mrs.) MBA, BSc., Cert-Mass Comm Citizen
The statement that Trinidadians are undisciplined has never sat comfortably with me.
The statement insinuates that we are unable to carefully control the way we work, live, or behave, especially to achieve our goals. My intuition is that, as a people, we do what the system allows and whatever we can get away with.
Photo: Massy Trinidad All Stars at the 2017 Panorama competition.
Think of our panyards; they are clear examples of communities being goal-oriented, observing strict division of labour, following the instructions of the leader and accepting the consequences. Bands are unlikely to succeed if they break these rules.
Think of Mas Bands and the traditional Carnival Mas Camps. They know the goal, organise to deliver the products and, in the majority of cases, hit the road on time and within budget.
Parallel these thoughts with our excellent handling of Covid-19 and what you see is that the goal was clear. It was to flatten the curve. The consequences were articulated by WHO and most international media houses.
You knew that you could become seriously ill, die or cause the death of your loved one. The context and remedy were communicated—close the borders and stay home.
It is the first time that I have seen our politicians take the advice of the scientists and follow it to the letter.
I hope this marks a new era in our development, an era in which our politicians and leaders will listen and take action based on science and data and not on their gut feelings.
Photo: Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh (left) and CMO Dr Roshan Parasram.
But it is not as simple as following advice; a clear goal must be articulated and this is where we have failed big time over the past 62 years as an independent nation. Vision 2020 was an excellent effort but it fell by the wayside and Vision 2030 is a ‘gambage’—flashy but short on substance.
The ‘blue economy’ as articulated by the former People’s Partnership coalition government, like many other plans which were driven from the top, never really resonated with the population.
For example, if proper information is publicly provided, any citizen should be able to articulate the long term plans for any government project: like ‘flatten the curve’. But at the moment, those plans are not evident and the political rhetoric continues to be vitriolic and accusatory.
We have very little data to drive decision-making. And in this eleventh Parliament, no clear, strategic directions were articulated to ensure that the systems, structures and processes are put in place to strengthen our data-gathering capacity. We are not even sure which institution has the responsibility, and the Central Statistical Office (CSO) is lagging way behind.
Whoever forms the next government must focus on decision-making based on data. Otherwise our country will continue to lag behind on every indicator of development.
Photo: Trinidad and Tobago supporters pose for a photograph during a break in Russia 2018 World Cup qualifying action against Costa Rica at the Hasely Crawford Stadium on 11 November 2016. (Courtesy Sean Morrison/Wired868)
Worse than that, the already decades-long brain drain will continue, and those of us left to make sense of the continuing chaos will have an almost impossible task.
For us to change the backward direction of our country, citizens have a responsibility to demand that our systems, processes and structures are designed to work in the digital space of the 21st century.
Dennise Demming 