Submitted by Anthony Davis
Minister of Education Ronald Jones has maintained that Government’s tertiary education tuition fee policy was necessary or the number of students would have had to be restricted because […] the Freundel Stuart administration simply could not continue to heavily subsidize education while supporting other services – Barbados Today
In his column “Fighting Goliath” on page 16 of the same issue David Comissiong states: “The latest ‘political crime’ of the current DLP Government has been the imposition of tuition fees on students of the Barbados Community College (BCC).”
First of all, Mr. Minister of Education: What is a “definitive fact”?
If the reason for not allowing the scions of the poor, the needy, the vulnerable – and more and more the so-called middle class – a free education is the economy, why don’t you and your colleagues, especially the Minister of Finance, use the taxes which we are paying for funding the education, health, and welfare services of our country instead of giving them to entities such as Sandals and Cahill Energy?
You can give such entities millions of tax rebates, but you say that there is a “low cash flow” when it has anything to do with the necessities of the populace of this country. Home drums should always beat first. The Minister of Finance has not only our taxes to give away, but our land and water also! How many of the taxpayers of this country cannot even get one of the Government houses or apartments, far less a plot of land?
There was the case where people had paid Government for plots of land, and Government confiscated their land to give it to someone else.
We have the poor, the needy and the vulnerable – not forgetting those in St. Andrew and St. Joseph who do not see water very often, but still receive horrendous bills for water – whose water is cut off as soon as they go into arrears, but the Minister of Finance and the other magnificent three have the gall to give away not only our water to some Johnny-come-lately company, along with the rights to drill for water on the free land which it is receiving, whenever it likes, but our land as if it is his!
Thirty years of water FREE!
We have a weak economy, and instead of putting our taxes to proper use, the magnificent four can give away our taxes as they like, whereas the scions of the said taxpayers who are being fleeced must now pay not only to go to UWI, but to BCC!
Pray tell me, Messieurs Ministers, what else will you demolish or leave in disrepair, while the Minister of Finance complains of a “cash flow”?
There may be a low cash flow, but in the wrong direction!
It is being given to companies like Cahill Energy and Sandals!
No wonder Cahill Energy chose Barbados!
Who would turn down the sweetest sweetheart deal of which he/she has ever heard?
Does our Psychiatric Hospital look like somewhere to put people into?
What about the QEH? Is that still functioning as it should after its funding has been drastically reduced?
How about the equipment for it?
Is it still lacking?
Are the nurses working proper hours?
Education needs money.
Welfare needs money.
The Health Department needs money.
The Child Care Board needs money.
The Minister of Finance says he has none for these important planks of our society, but he has hundreds of millions of our tax dollars for foreign entities.
What deal did you give the Pure Hotel and Spa which is now putting nine six-storey buildings on the promontory overlooking Foul Bay and which will destroy the beautiful view not only for the residents, but those passing through?
This shows utter contempt for the populace of this country!
This also means that another popular beach will be no longer be available to residents and those tourists who drive around the island – whether by bus, hired car or taxi.
Nothing is being left intact for our progeny and their progeny.
Yet, this is a “people-centred Government”.
This burden must be borne by those who are not born yet, and do not even know about the inheritance they will receive.
It seems that your favourite slogan: “Our children are our future” no longer obtains!
My motto is: “Beware of gift-bringing Greeks!”
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