I took a chance and agreed to an assignment with Invaders for Carnival 2019.  The result is a new, sweet, exciting love which is so emotionally conflicting that I break out in cold sweat.  My “puppy love” had been for the band of my birthplace in East Dry River: Despers. Then history unfolded and I accepted the position of Corporate communications Manager at WITCO (West Indian Tobacco Company) where I had responsibility for Desperadoes.  I attempted to mold that puppy love into the perfection that existed only in my own head. The result, a failure that continues to haunt my existence. It was like a novice trying to ride and tame a wild horse. Despite the availability of money and huge passion, my Despers experiment failed mainly because the band was in search of a “new man with a hammer”.  At the end of my tour of duty, I had a palpable dislike for pan except for the adrenaline rush which Panorama produces, complete with increased heart beat and increased physical capacity.

Over the years, I have kept a distance from pan except for the annual foray into the panyards which always ended with me proudly wearing my Despers T-Shirt at Panorama semi finals in the North Stand pretending to be some kind of “bad john” Despers supporter.  Over the years my love has been growing cold because the band has not changed and has become what I describe as the “vagrant brand” bouncing from one home to another in Port of Spain, running from their own children. What adds to my anxiety is the knowledge that the generosity of the sponsor, WITCO is tenuous; they are a company operating without the legal opportunity to advertise, and I am surprised that they continue the sponsorship.  The future of Despers is in jeopardy but their capacity for music is unquestionable.

Carnival 2019 found me flirting with a new “man” and the relationship was consummated at the Panorama Semi Finals with me wearing an Invaders T-Shirt on the “drag”.  This caused enough taunting from friends who knew me well including Noreen who said: “Well look meh crosses!”. Invaders has been a truly inspiring experience for me and I have learned several lessons which needs further formal refinement.

Lean management structure is alive and continuously implemented at Invaders Pan Yard.  Their structure comprises a Board of Management, an Executive (of which the three most active Leaders are the Manager, the Captain and the Operations Manager) and the players.  To the observer, there is a seamless interplay which causes things to happen every night of practice. It becomes even more intense and seamless when all the racks are moved from their small panyard to the neighbouring car park without voices being raised or the use of expletives.  Most players simply push their racks from one venue to the other and the practice begins in earnest. Maybe the presence of so many young people is responsible for this civility but “de cussing” was just not evident to me.

Placing a value on productivity is another key lesson.  When players turn up, they get to their positions, begin to practice by rote  and do so until they get the music which means being able to play the piece as demonstrated by someone who “got it”.  It requires repetition and a level of dedication which I have only seen in athletes, highly motivated students or perhaps classical musicians.  Several nights I asked the question: what would it take to transfer this productivity and dedication to the Public Service or CEPEP or any other State Enterprise? Maybe it is the instant gratification of getting the tune because every practice ended on several “run-throughs” of the tune from start to finish or wherever they reached so the player felt accomplished or understood the unassigned homework that was required.  For at least four weeks, the end or the completeness of the tune is a moving target which can change at any time and the players unquestioningly work with this ambiguity. Conversely, changing an instruction for a Public Servant requires an effort similar to that required for changing national legislation.

In traditional management we talk about PESOS as an approach for training persons to master a task.  PESOS is an acronym for prepare, explain, show, observe and supervise.  In each section of the band, I saw this happening over and over and without push-back.  Imagine if this occurred every day in the public service, we would have such smooth running institutions.

This assignment re-energized my hope not only for steelband but for my country.  If I had the opportunity I would redirect the money which is allocated to creating temporary Carnival infrastructure, to setting up a task force to identify the transferable lessons from the steelband yards with the purpose of finding a way to implement these lessons in the Public Service and All State Enterprises.  

In the same way that the Total Quality Movement was initiated in the 1940s and became a way of doing business, maybe we can establish a steelband approach to doing business in developing countries but it would have to begin in the panyards and backstreets of our countries.  Annually at least 5,000 persons live a panyard experience of being goal oriented, highly productive and disciplined. Economic diversification is not just a thing, but must become a way of life and sport and culture provides a rich opportunity for the brave.

Thank you, Invaders.

There is a kind of positive energy associated with Carnival and particularly with the steelband movement. Players survive on less sleep and exhibit discipline and high levels of productivity in order to learn their Panorama tune. There is something we need to understand about Carnival, Pan and Panyards and their social impact. I see several positives in the approach by the ordinary panman and panwoman, and this year the number of youngsters who populate the bands.

A few years ago, Pan Trinbago introduced Preliminary judging at the panyards. This has morphed into busloads of supporters riding privately contracted maxi taxis from one panyard to the next, following the judges and attempting to maximize their experience of how each band is approaching their tune of choice. Hundreds of people move from panyard to panyard on these judging nights and there is an atmosphere of happiness and peace.

An unintended consequence of this desire to follow the judges is the horrendous traffic jams along the judging route. Some brave souls will walk in the Woodbrook area, but generally supporters drive and this just adds to the traffic congestion along the route.

Here’s an opportunity for a thinking Mayor of Port of Spain, the Minister of Works and Transport and Commissioner of Police. We can experiment with “a walkable city” with a park-and-ride transit system just for the night. This would keep hundreds of cars off the street and introduce a healthy approach to this fun-filled evening. If it works, we can then expand it so little by little we can demonstrate to our citizenry that we have to take a different approach to transportation, and that it can work.  

This idea was taken from a book called “Walkable City” by Urbanist Jeff Speck. He answers the question: “How do we solve the problem of the suburbs?” In this case, substitute “congested cities” for “suburbs”. He suggests that we free ourselves from our dependence on the car “by making our cities more walkable and more pleasant for people”.

I recall the stridency of the current Prime Minister on the campaign trail talking about transportation being a quality of life issue. Since his assumption of office, the stridency has turned to a meek cry that the IADB study says it would be too expensive. Ok, a mass transit system may be expensive but there are other things we can do. We can invite Mr. Speck to give us some advice or we can retrieve the transportation plan for which the country has paid millions and see if there is anything in there worth implementing. We can even ask advice from locals, Dr. Trevor Townsend and Dr. Ray Furlonge or we can even set up a think-tank of urban planners with a brief to provide some short-term solutions. But instead, we do nothing and the traffic continues to be murderous. I wonder when was the last time any of the “big boys” travelled from Arima to Port of Spain at peak traffic without their sirens blaring to rush past their forlorn employers stuck in sweltering heat. I guarantee you that it takes at least two hours so that’s a four hour commute every day for women and children.

There is ample data that walkable cities will positively impact lifestyle diseases like obesity and hypertension because people will have to walk and that alone has a positive impact. Instead, what I continue to see is an absence of thought, leadership and innovation.

We know the date for Carnival 2020 and I hope that Mayor of Port of Spain, the Minister of Works and Transport and Commissioner of Police will collaborate to try a walkable city for the judging of Panorama 2020.

Today marks the end of life as you knew it for the past whatever number of years you worked proudly for Petrotrin.  Today, you awake with an emptiness deep in your soul and a lack of clarity about your future. You are not even assured that the severance package to which you are entitled will be paid.  You don’t know when, next money will be deposited into your account.

Depending on how you calculate it, you are one of either 1700, 3500 or 5000 family members who are awake now with nothing to do this morning and several mornings to come.  Unofficial statistics suggest that you join another 18000 persons who have lost their jobs under the leadership of Dr. Keith Christopher Rowley.

The most important thing you can do for you and your family is to take time to assess your finances.  Really work the number of days to bankruptcy and do it with your significant other. This can be a frightening task but it will give you a true sense of where you are and what you need to do.  It will also help you whip up the courage to have a conversation with your bank, credit union or financial institution and plan for your future.

The only bright light in this equation is that some of you will be employed by Paria and Legacy because there is no other option.  The pool of employees for any new company is the local workforce and there are only a few multi-thousand dollar jobs available for expatriates and politically connected locals.  But many of you either have to retrain for a new career or learn to survive on a reduced income. However you chart your future course, you must never forget that the ultimate responsibility for the closure of Petrotrin belongs to the current Prime Minister, Dr. Keith Christopher Rowley.

When he is no longer Prime Minister, I shall remember him for three things.  Firstly, his lack of accountability to Petrotrin workers and the nation about the future of Petrotrin.  My second memory will be about him paying lip service to holding collaboration as a core value.  In his capacity as Leader of the Opposition, he collaborated with the Union and signed a MOU which was quickly abandoned when he became Prime Minister.  My third memory will be of a Prime Minister who talks about transparency but who hides his action “under a bushel”.  The new companies Paria and Legacy were not conceptualized yesterday; they have been long in the planning.  It is just that the roll-out has been sloppy.

Meanwhile, spare a thought for workers at TSTT who are currently undergoing a similar hatchet job.  WASA, I hear you are next in line for the chopping block.