Blame endemic corruption in Trinidad and Tobago on the country’s broken institutions and its elites, said economist and former deputy governor of the Central Bank Terrence Farrell.
Farrell’s remarks were made in a speech delivered at the Trinidad and Tobago Transparency Institute’s
anti-corruption conference on March 20, at Hilton Trinidad, Port of Spain.
Farrell outlined just how the country’s institutions were constrained and how the onus lies with the country’s elite, through principled leadership, to take it forward.
He outlined the evidence of the broken systems:
1. T&T is yet to record a conviction for serious white-collar crime.
“The Piarco accused are yet to see the High Court for trial of their matter, and it is now almost 20
years since the offences were allegedly committed,” he noted.
2. The inability of the Teaching Service Commission to reign in “errant” teachers.
3. The use of contract employment to circumvent the Public Service Commission, a practice that
had the downside of opening the worker to exploitation and injustice.
4. The inability of the Police Service Commission to appoint a police commissioner.
5. The lack of powers of the Integrity Commission.
“It should be an institution which is feared and respected. Our IC is neither feared nor respected. It is now a political joke to say you are reporting X or Y to the IC to score cheap political points
and as a form of political mud-slinging, knowing full well that the investigation will take at least
three months, or more likely more, and will come to nought,” he said.
6. Wasted commissions of enquiries:
He went further: “Forensic reports, from which people like Bob Lindquist made lots of money,
reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission on corporate wrong- doing, police
investigations into missing files, all end up amounting to naught.
“And we all know that it will end up to naught and the people who initiate the investigations know
they will end up to naught, but launch them because they look good and they feel that form
equates to substance, that planning equates to performance. We make a great show of appearing
to do something when things go egregiously wrong, and then do nothing.”
7. The education system
“With an unstated focus on throughput, many children pass through the system, primary to
secondary, and emerge unable to read and write. And they emerge angry and disaffected and
beaten down. Tertiary-level graduates, even law school graduates, cannot write proper English,
much less use language with skill, subtlety and creativity,” he noted.
“All around us, our institutions are broken, limping, pretending to function—the media, Carnival, the Central Bank, the Central Statistical Office, the universities, the Licensing Office, the Police Service.
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Blame-our-elite-and-broken-institutions-298082021.html
Replies
It will be an interesting exercise to measure the difference between the Assets of ministers in the PP government demitting office after the general elections of 2015, in relation to their Assets just prior to them assuming office. Perhaps, legislation is needed (if it does not exist) to compel government ministers to declare their assets (and that of their immediate family) at the end of their elected term.
This is so true; we're always so quick to blame our ills on those at the bottom , the poor , the disaffected and those who see no future and resort to crime for survival.
While they may sometimes be at fault, much if not most of the blame for the unfortunate situations in T&T lies with those at the top , the ones who have the capacity to make change and be problem solvers, but instead are part of the problem.
"We make a great SHOW of appearing to do something when things go wrong, and then do nothing"
Institutions are broken, limping, pretending to function----the media,Carnival, the Central Bank, the Central Statistical Office, the universities, the Licensing Office, the Police Service. He forgot the government.
The mood of the country is "grab and snatch" each man for himself.
Somebody put an end to this.
"WE NOT I" will always be the better route.