Latest update April 25th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jan 01, 2014 Editorial
At this time of the year we make resolutions because we all decide that we would be better than we were last year. At midnight, many of us would have made wishes with or without those whom we consider our life partners, or with close family members and friends. And of course, those resolutions and wishes are often not too extravagant.
Given the challenges we encountered at different times of the past year, not least among them the garbage crisis and being blacklisted by the international financial regulators, we also hope for better times. Some of us would simply hope that we live through the year.
The economic prospects are still relatively uncertain, given the modest levels of foreign investment and the apparent cutbacks by the international donor community. But the New Year offers something for each of us. One of the things the country can look forward to much-touted canal at Hope/Dochfour, something that has been on the cards for longer than the authorities would have anticipated.
Then there are things that we would like to see, and one of those is an end to race-based politics. Given their importance, there is a strong probability that local government elections will finally be held this year. And as any form of elections surfaces, so do the racial tensions and problems, because we seem to have conditioned ourselves to behave in a certain manner on these occasions.
This should not be the situation this year if we are to continue to seek development and to win the confidence of the foreigners who are seeking investment opportunities.
But there is another worrying trend. Each year violent crimes seem to increase. There is a plethora of guns in the wrong hands, and those of us with these guns have become senseless killers. Some are said to be offering their services as killers for little or nothing. This tells us that human life is depreciating in value.
As we talk about resolutions we often wonder whether resolutions form part of the lives of the criminals. Many of them know deep in their hearts that they would not wish any harm to come to either them or to the people close to them. Therefore, with that understanding and appreciation, they should appreciate that others are of the same feeling.
To hear some people talk is to believe that criminals have a right to whatever they do. In our midst we have people who talk about no work being available and of inadequate pay for certain jobs. But these people do not talk about the need for people to undertake activities that would help the country move ahead and be in a position to pay the kind of money that people believe they should receive.
Yet, as we look at Trinidad and Tobago with perhaps the best economy in the region, we find that there is a high level of crime. There were over 400 murders in the twin-island Republic last year. Certainly the issue could not have been poor pay or an absence of jobs.
Perhaps all this crime has to do with the narco-trade and rampant corruption, and it is here that we should focus our efforts. The leaders of this nation need to display the resolve to alleviate this scourge. There are individuals in our midst who are enjoying the lawlessness. They must be made as uncomfortable as possible via legal means.
Surely we need to fashion for ourselves conditions that would see us come out ahead in these difficult times. For this reason our collective resolution should be to strive to build a united country for our own betterment.
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