TAWU General Council looks at economic crisis

TAWU General Council looks at economic crisis

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Details: Parent Category: Dec 2011; Category: Week ending Dec 03rd, 2011; Published on Monday, 19 December 2011 15:59; Hits: 407

Delegates at the Third General Council Meeting of the Seventh Tri-Annual National Conference of the Grenada Technical and Allied Workers Union (TAWU) were particularly concerned over the economic situation facing the country.

The delegates met over a two-day period at the Grenada National Stadium under the theme, “Understanding The Global Economic Crisis, Consequences To The Economy And Measures To Relive Its Impact.”

The General Council is TAWU’s highest decision-making body and meets once every six months to look at the finances and policies of the union. It is also responsible for implementing the decisions of the tri-annual national conference, and gives directions to the management committee, which runs the day-to-day affairs of the union.

The tone of the General Council was set by Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Timothy Antoine who addressed the delegates on the theme. President General of TAWU, Senator Chester Humphrey indicated that the meeting has taking place at a very difficult economic time.

Sen. Humphrey who spoke to the media recognised that jobs will be the driving force of the current economic recovery to bring relief to families who have seen their income significantly diminish. He said that TAWU is very much disappointed with the failure of the three-year old Government of Prime Minister Tillman Thomas to create jobs in a significant way.

The union boss identified the construction sector as the best possibility for creating jobs on a large scale. He reiterated his disappointment over the failure of government to start the Kuwaiti-funded agricultural feeder roads project.

This, he said has been a major strategic error on the part of the administration which he said can cost it very dearly in a general elections. “It is a major strategic error, a lack of foresight, lack of political will, lack of clarity. It is a major blunder made by the government and we’re paying for it,” he remarked.

According to Sen. Humphrey, the multi-million dollar project could have directly created about four hundred jobs, and another three hundred indirectly. Government decided to put the project out for re-tendering after rejecting the start up cost proposed by the controversial Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC) to execute the project.

The local representative for CCC is Nelson Louison, the brother of former Minister of State for Private Sector Development in the former New National Party (NNP) regime, Senator Einstein Louison. Some government insiders are known to be nervous about the close relationship between CCC and the former administration.

Last week, new Minister of Works, Senator Denneth Modeste announced on a radio programme that government is currently at the pre-tendering stage of the project. Well-placed government sources told this newspaper that the Kuwaiti funded road works are expected to art in the first half of next year.