#BTColumn – Our ‘State of Emergency’ country

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the author(s) do not represent the official position of Barbados TODAY.

By Ryan Walters

Something came to mind recently and I simply cannot shake the thought. I wonder if the Prime Minister’s decision to keep the country under a State of Emergency under the Emergency Management Act, actually has anything to do with COVID or a health crisis.

Daily, I become more and more convinced that the country’s State of Emergency status is very indicative of our current plight. I am beginning to believe that we, the citizens, must start to take this term literally and see it as a signal from the Government that we are indeed in dire straits.

The “Emergency” at hand is very apparent since the country is going through severe economic, social and political hardship. The financial toll is especially being felt by the ordinary man, woman and is affecting many households.

It is almost as if the Mia Mottley-led administration is making this bold and unapologetic proclamation.

Those of us who have to endure it day in and day out know it very well. When we go into the supermarket we feel it as prices continue to rise although large businesses were given tax write-offs and tax breaks.

Even the existing “Social Compact” signed between Government and the private sector to supposedly keep prices under control is yet to be felt by consumers on the shelves. We hold our breaths while we wait to see the prices during the Christmas season.

Gas prices are still high, they continue to be over $4 per litre although the price of oil per barrel on the international market has trended down below US$100. Additionally, the Government has broken the status quo of adjusting gas prices on the first Sunday of every month to what appears to be an unorthodox regime that takes consumers by surprise.

We are truly in a State of Emergency when reports suggest that a senior Minister boldly stood in defence of the Barbados Light and Power Company (BLPC) which has been under scrutiny and heavy criticism for making a case for a rate increase.

In our State of the Emergency country, the Government is playing economic poker. After having to fold their hand after their failed debt restructuring exercise, they now turn to borrow two billion dollars ($2B) in debt in BERT 2, a move that is sure to further burden tax-payers down the road. 

A move that is also coming four years after writing off one billion dollars ($1B) in value added tax owed to the Government by corporations and losing close to another one billion dollars ($1B) in revenue by discontinuing the National Social Responsibility Levy (NSRL).

It is definitely an “Emergency” when the Government has not been able to jump start this economy with the numerous projects which were repeatedly announced in Budget and Throne speeches since 2018.

However, most interestingly in our State of Emergency, we are now told that the much touted move to renewable energy is likely to cost the Government $105 million dollars annually, a sum which according to reports, will have to be recouped from taxpayers with new taxes. Isn’t it funny that no government official has put forward the other side of this coin prior? What then is the benefit to the average man and already struggling households?

As if the economic mess is not enough, to make matters worse, in our State of Emergency country, almost every week our young brothers are dying from gun violence as crime continues to spiral out of control. Government’s response is to change the laws and increase the number of judges, but is that enough? This week alone we have had four separate shootings in five days. The latest, a brazen attack that has left innocent law-abiding citizens who were commuting onboard the PSV, in shock, fear and traumatised.

Our children were not spared the raft of our State of Emergency country. After having to be mentally abused by the IDB Survey which was sanctioned by the Minister of Education, who by the way, remains untouched as the Minister in the last cabinet shuffle. A move that is quite contrary to the strong, loud and repetitive calls by parents and the general public.

If that is not enough, our children, teachers and staff remain exposed to what can be referred to as a health hazard at the Lawrence T. Gay Primary School. Seems like there is no end in sight as the Minister is incapable of solving those issues.

And yes, in our State of Emergency republic, the Government of the day, tried to take our Independence Day from us. Making an ill-advised decision that shows that the majority of the Cabinet appears to have their own personal interest at heart, as opposed to the interests of those who put them in a position to look after their interest as citizens of this country. So yes, I think I now see clearly why the PM continues to keep our country in a State of Emergency . . . because, from all indications, we are definitely in one!

Ryan Walters (MBA in Finance) is former spokesperson on Small Business for the Democratic Labour Party and Manager of International Franchises in Barbados.