Flooding in Trinidad and Tobago 2005

“There are two big forces at work, external and internal. We have very little control over external forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, disasters, illness and pain. What really matters is the internal force. How do I respond to those disasters? Over that I have complete control.” [Leo F. Buscaglia – American Guru 1924 – 1998].

The flooding in Trinidad and Tobago within recent weeks proves once again that the authorities are inept at dealing with minor disasters, and I say minor in terms of a major catastrophe. The recent flooding has had a major effect on the lives of hundreds of people. Night after night, residents of Central Trinidad could not have gotten to or from their homes, essentially stranded and helpless.

The response by the newly created Office for Disaster Preparedness and Management [ODPM] was no different from the hapless performance of its predecessor- the National Emergency Management Agency [NEMA]. A simple thing like assisting flood victims turned into a political firestorm when the Chairman of the Tunapuna/Piarco Regional Corporation [TPRC], Mrs. Pat Meijas [nice lady] and Councilor for St. Helena/Warren Sharma Deonarine were frustrated by a defiant Chief Executive Officer [co-coordinating officer for disaster relief under new arrangement in that region] who was late in issuing orders for emergency assistance. This all took place within a Regional Corporation that is controlled by the ruling party. What the hell is going on here?

Be that as it may, it seems typical of a PNM reply to a disaster. They have years of experience at it! There was a continuing argument between the TPRC and the ODPM about who should be doing what. Even a little water on the south bound carriageway of the Uriah Butler Highway turned out to be a major fiasco for the newly created agency. Motorists were made to wait in traffic for up to eight hours in some instances between November 17 and 20, 2005. It is my belief that the population should register their displeasure with the performance of the ODPM by calling 640 1285 or emailing info@nema.gov.tt its Executive Director Paul Saunders. Let him know how you feel and if he can’t do the job, he should excuse himself.

Really though, I am not surprised. This is a typical PNM response. Year after year, the government would give assurances, and year after year, the floods would come. This government seems to be impotent, perhaps in more ways than one, but let us stick to the delivery of service for now.

On December 27, 2004, Councilor for Edinburgh/Chickland, Paras Ramoutar said that he hoped that flooding would be a thing of the past in Caparo because of impending hydraulic projects promised by then Works Minister Franklin Khan, who by the way is now before the courts. Isn’t it strange that the Chairmen of the two major parties are before the courts on corruption charges at the same time? Now that is uncanny.

Well, obviously that didn’t work out for the residence of Caparo. They were hoping for some respite after having suffered 8 major floods in one year alone. On April 20, 2005, then Works Minister Franklin Khan said “Come rainy season, the villages of El Carmen, St. Helena, Kelly Village and Caroni will have a significantly reduced flooding problem.” Either his engineers were deliberately deceiving him or he was sleeping on the job…

Khan went on to state that major improvement works, which included widening the Caroni River, creating embankments and straightening meanders of the river had been ongoing since July 2003. Earlier this year, he also stated that 90% of the original works had been completed while the additional work is 40% concluded. The work was as he put it on schedule and expected to be completed by July 2005.

To further illustrate a PNM response to a problem, the Port of Spain City Corporation in October 2002 purchased a gully cleaner for $1.2 million. Yet, after three minutes of rain, parts of the capital city are inundated by flood waters. This, of course is from a city that is bidding to host the Secretariat of the Free Trade Areas of the Americas [FTAA].

Farmers were particularly hard it by the recent floods and it is to be expected that food prices will rise significantly well into the Christmas season. Government has failed to devise a fully comprehensive policy to alleviate the suffering of the food bearers of the nation in times of crises. As a result, the National Food Crop Farmers’ Association will be hosting a public forum/symposium on Saturday December 10, 2005 at the Frank Stockdale Building, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, from 3p.m. to deal with perennial flooding and providing solutions for the short and medium terms. All farmers and members of the public who wish to attend are asked to contact Norris Deonarine at 774 1276 for further information.

Successive PNM governments have destroyed the agricultural sector in this country. Agriculture’s contribution to the annual Gross Domestic Product [GDP] accounted for 10.8% in 1985, 9.1% in 1999 and 1.2% in 2004. In fact, it has been s systematic policy of destruction since no genuine effort has been made to save the food basket. Closing down Caroni 1975 Limited before a structure was in place to ensure continuity just added a handful of salt to the wound.

The Minister of Finance in presenting the 1962 budget speech stated “The government has already made its intentions clear that the area in which there will be greater orientation of its efforts is agriculture.” At that time, agriculture accounted for gainfully employing 22% of the labour force. The 1975 budget presentation made mention of “measurers proposed to increase food production and support agricultural development.” However, during the budget debate for the 1994 fiscal package, Senator Salisha Baksh on Friday November 25, 1994 summed up government’s inadequacies when it comes to agriculture like this “Simply put, for this entire 32 years as a whole [1962 – 1994], this country’s position in terms of food self sufficiency and security have worsened, and the results of these past policy actions proved fruitless.”

In his 2002/2003 budget presentation, Prime Minister Patrick Manning said “We will focus on enhancing the physical infrastructure namely: marketing facilities, water management, flood control, irrigation and agricultural access roads and land settlement.” These words seem cheap now that government has exposed its naked grabbed for arable lands to build houses in order to voter pad. You would do well to remember the Ramgoolie Trace, Curepe experience. The shame of it all!

The 2003/2004 budget speech was much the same. In it, he said that “We shall improve land management and administration by addressing the issues relating to the leasing, renting, buying and selling of state lands and buildings.” Yet, to this day, the farmers of Garden Village in Arouca and Bois Bande in Sangre Grande are still without leases. Some of them have been cultivating the lands in excess of 40 years.

In the same budget presentation, the Minister of Finance went on to state that they will “Review and implement policies for encouraging sustainable land use and the preservation of the nation’s forests, wet-lands, watersheds, flora and fauna.” What a joke! This is the same Prime Minister who sanctioned the construction of Savannah Villa in Aranguez and houses at Ramgoolie Trace in Curepe. Both areas are acknowledged as grade one agricultural lands, the best in the country. Words can indeed be cheap.

Just as with agriculture, this government is equally two tongued when it comes to flooding. In presenting the 2004/2005 budget, the Prime Minister stated that “Our National Drainage Programme’s primary objective is the provision of adequate drainage and irrigation infrastructure to alleviate the perennial incidence of flooding throughout the country.” This government is clearly big on words and small on action.

While they continue to mislead and mismanage the affairs of state, thousands are suffering for a lack of direction. It is clear that the PNM can win an election, but it cannot govern. If we do not change the government, what is our next option? Do we accept mediocrity as standard or do we hold public officials accountable for their performance? I wait anxiously to see how much belly Trinidadians and Tobagonians really have…