Although the T&T economy is relatively strong, the country is in crisis. That is the view of Hayden Blades, president of Business Insight Ltd.
"We have killed 38 young people already for the year. Our young people are dying on the streets. They are in need of mentorship. Despite this, we have achieved a lot since Independence and we have benefited from the largesse of the energy sector. We have the highest income per capita in the southern Caribbean," he said in his address at the launch of the calendar of events of the Co-operative Credit Union League of T&T at the Capital Plaza, Port-of-Spain.
"It is easy for us to buy bulletproof cars and build high fences. In ten years if we continue at this rate, the western media will be describing this country as a failed state. No one can save T&T, only the citizens of this country can do that," he said.Blades urged the credit union sector, as one of the stakeholders in the country, to encourage young people to get involved in positive activity.
"They must get them involved in leadership positions so that this can lead to nation building," he advised, saying that young people in T&T need to take better hold of the opportunities that come their way."Many young people do not even have basic certification to work in KFC but we must have the capacity to change that."He said T&T has to act now to solve the serious challenges it faces.
"It is now the time for citizens of the country to stop talking. We must see the need to engage in crisis management. We must convince our governors, this has to be about people empowerment. Rome is burning and we need to stop fiddling."