Prime Minister Patrick Manning went on television Wednesday to promise the nation that he will deal the problem of rising food prices and crime, asking citizens to join the “movement forward.” “No government can please all the people all the time but we should all contribute to solving rather than aggravating the challenges we face as a nation,” he said.
Manning told the nation high oil prices is a double-edged sword that provided additional revenues at home but aggravated the situation in developed countries like the United States, which is on the verge of a recession.
He noted that the slowing of the U.S. economy means a reduction in exports and predicted that trade within the region could be similarly affected.
The prime minister blamed high energy costs, climate changes, and increasing demands for alcohol production as an alternative to motor fuel for the global food shortage and rising prices.
“This has led many to observe that the days of cheap food are over,” he said. “I am confident, however, that we shall overcome our challenges.”
However he didn’t present any immediate solution to the food crisis facing the nation other than covering some of the same ground that has so far failed to deal with the problem.
One of his short-term fixes is to set up a 75-acre model greenhouse farm by ammonia producer PCS Nitrogen.
“This will be a model farm utilizing the latest technology and which will inspire the replication of similar operations by farmers throughout the country,” Manning said.
“We expect the farm to be 50 per cent operational by the end of this year, meaning the production of more food domestically,” Manning said.
He also promised 7,000 new farms on former Caroni lands and 16 mega-farms, each at least 100 acres for large-scale food production for local consumption and export.
And he promised to get involved with the Bharrat Jagdeo CARICOM food initiative that involves the utilization of large land resources of Guyana for regional production of food.
On crime Manning conceded that it was at an unacceptable level and asked citizens to be patient.
“We are tackling the problem on several fronts to ensure that it does not re-emerge,” he said.
He tried to shift the focus from the reality of the killing fields of more than one murder a day, pointing out that kidnappings have almost completely disappeared. And he outlined measures his government is taking to deal with the crime problem.
These include the use of more community police, scientific methods in criminal cases, speedier trials, improved infrastructure and resources for the Judiciary and the use of modern technology.
He explained that the “unacceptable” homicide numbers could be attributed to the illegal trade in guns and drugs and said his government is dealing with the problem with a 24-7 radar coastal surveillance system.
He promised to pursue “greater regional and international co-operation to deal with the trans-national activity of modern criminal networks”.
He has invited CARICOM leaders to a summit in Port of Spain beginning Friday to deal with crime and agree on common initiatives to fight one of the region’s biggest problems.
Some immediate reaction:
Professor Selwyn Ryan: “Nothing new…political context meant to lift national gloom.”
Commentator Dr Morgan Job: A speech “to placate the masses.”
Winston Dookeran, COP Leader: The PM “…signaled that there are more problems ahead and that he must be absolved of responsibility.”
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