It is like killing children you can’t afford to feed

Jan 20, 2016 Letters

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Dear Editor,
I recall that sometime around 2003 I sat in a meeting for senior staff of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo’s) East Demerara Estate, at which the then CEO, Mr. Michael Boast spoke about the need to save those estates that were good performers, by letting go of those that were performing poorly.  The analogy he used then was that if you have eight children but can only provide adequately for some, you have to ‘shoot’ those you cannot provide for.  Many were taken aback by the comparison he chose, but the point was made.
The GuySuCo family did get rid of one of its ‘children’ – the La Bonne Intention (LBI) factory and subsequently the Diamond cultivation – in 2011.  In the interim between Mr. Boast’s reminder and the eventual closure of the LBI factory, some improvements were made.  However, there remained a hard core of people who appeared not to care that such an eventuality could happen.  There was no end to the demands; it was as though some felt that the estate had a tremendous amount of money stashed and was bent on denying them their ‘entitlements’.  Others just seemed to dare the dreaded prospect of closure, not caring about the outcome.
And so we have now come to that point again when another of the ‘golden geese’ is put on the chopping block.  The government’s recent announcement that the Wales Estate will be closed later this year came as a shock to many especially since the public had been assured that there will be no closure of any of the estates.  Closure was also not among the recommendations of the GuySuCo Commission of Inquiry (COI).
The writing was there on the wall for some time now; it was almost a foregone conclusion that the poorly-performing Demerara sugar estates will have to be phased out in the future, in preference for further improvements in the Berbice region.  Some sections of our society pegged such an outcome on the likelihood of a change in government.  The decision the government / GuySuCo has made was admittedly a difficult one; but it was one firmly grounded in economic and financial prudence.  An ‘outsider’ after examining the books and any prospect for revival would very likely have arrived at the same decision.
However, the timing of the announcement is a little unfortunate.  The economy has been in recession for nearly a year now; the country failed to achieve the projected economic growth rate of 3.4%, with the estimated shortfall being 1.0 – 1.5% (KN, Jan. 4, 2016).  Empirical data also suggests that unemployment is rising, particularly as a result of contraction in the forestry, mining, construction and rice sectors.
This is very much unlike the economic situation back when LBI was closed.  Back then, gold production was soaring, exports were up and the construction boom was on.  In fact, the closure of LBI made hardly a ripple, as persons had then been leaving the estates in droves for greener pastures.  Those pastures are no longer there.
Amidst all of this economic downturn, is a new tide of senseless killings and other forms of serious criminality, driven particularly by youths and fuelled by greed and rampant drug abuse.  Into such an environment we are likely to release many hundreds of young men, and bring upon an already impoverished working class, a new wave of poverty.  As much as we understand and appreciate the financial ramifications behind the decision, we also need to become fully aware of the likely social impacts.
If only the final decision of ‘when’ the axe should fall on Wales, can be stayed until the economy experiences an upswing, so that those displaced can be absorbed elsewhere, rather than become part of the mayhem that is enveloping our society, it will be a pill so much easier to swallow!
But having gotten to this stage, and assuming that the decision for closure is irreversible, we now need to mobilize the different forms of social support that are needed to help those who are likely to be affected, to adjust their lives and continue to be productively employed.  The police need to become involved now, so as to discourage persons in the affected communities from gravitating to crime.  Religious and social organizations within the communities should be given part of the costs saved to start or fast-track their own support mechanisms.
Retraining and redeployment programmes now become necessary.  A programme for retention and suitable use of the estate’s arable lands is also necessary, and such a programme should seek to maximize the use of the displaced labour. We all know that despite Guyana being a vast country when compared to its population, the arable land resource we have is finite and may actually be reducing as a result of climate change.  Hence, there is need to ensure that changes in land use are kept to within suitable agricultural purposes.
Apart from the issues mentioned above, it is time the sugar workers of other poorly-performing estates – they know themselves – take heed of the hard decision that has been taken, and know that the writings on the walls for their estates have not been erased, but have rather been made brighter.  How much better are these poor performers, than the now doomed Wales Estate?  The contraction and other changes in the European market for sugar will eventually restrict Guyana to only being a regional supplier, in a much smaller market than we had in the past.  What will happen when that time comes, and in the interim that we wait?
Sugar workers must therefore not miss this important wake-up call that has been sounded.  We just cannot afford to continue living in denial of the stark reality that is before us.
Khemraj Tulsie

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