Former Minister of Home Affairs and MP of St James North Edmund Hinkson remains focused and committed even after being dropped from the Mia Mottley Cabinet.
These were the sentiments he shared over the weekend as he updated his branch on the current state of affairs in the constituency and sought to allay members’ fears following the recent Cabinet reshuffle. He said though the change may have caught residents by surprise, he remains committed to the task of improving the lives of all residents and communities under his charge in the parish.
“I know that there is a feeling among some people that when you are not a minister, your colleague ministers do not take you on, [and] it’s better to be in the cabinet. I can assure you, that in my case that will not be so. I will bother you [and] I will be a nuisance to you. I of course, without the cloak of collective responsibilities, can speak out more and will speak out more publicly on issues that affect the constituency,” Hinkson promised.
Speaking bluntly about the COVID-19 pandemic, currently affecting the world and which has brought the tourism sector to its knees, he said the country and its people will have to embark on new revenue streams if the island wishes to stay afloat during the rough months ahead.
Though Hinkson recognized that the Government was currently doing an excellent job in managing the crisis, he said COVID-19 has shone a bright light onto the current weaknesses in the island’s economy.
“This pandemic has exposed fundamental defects in our system. We obviously have become too dependent on tourism in this country. We knew that before, but it has been borne out now more than ever. Therefore, our responsibility is to find alternative services in other aspects of our economy, whether it be alternative or renewable energy, expanding the cultural industries and expanding international business and agricultural development,” he explained.
Hinkson was also hopeful that Barbados can push the agricultural sector into becoming more sustainable, as it was in the country’s past.
“Those in here who are a bit older than I, know of the days in Barbados when we used to grow a lot more food than we grow now. Even though we had a decline in agriculture, certainly in sugar because of the fundamental shifting of the international trading order, we still have to be in a position where we grow our food where we can cut down on our food bill,” he stated. (SB)
