The time has come for all good citizens to make their voices heard and with all the issues facing us today, the sooner the better. Various trade unions are calling for a general strike to force the Government to increase their wages. Unfortunately, their choice of action lacks the foresight that is needed from right thinking leaders who cannot see beyond their noses. What exactly do they hope to achieve? The very workers whose "interests" they claim to be seeking are the ones most likely to lose, as companies will in the long run not only seek to automate as much as possible, but will come to realise that they are over staffed. Have any of these same union leaders ever attempted to motivate their members to increase production, or to even give their employers a fair day's work? In case they don't know the lack of discipline and low productivity by the average worker is a disincentive to many investors and a general strike will only enforce that opinion. The plain fact is that five per cent of $100 is better than 100 per cent of nothing.
The police, too, have indicated that they will embark on five days of "Rest and Reflection" and if they expect the public to be sympathetic to their cause, they will be sorely disappointed as they already have a very low score in everyone's opinion polls. Most people will probably not notice their absence except at lunch times when they are normally seen at the various fast food outlets. The ratio of police officers to population here is less than 1:200 whereas in large cities and most countries it is almost 1:1000. Do the Maths. Yes, I agree that the PP Government has failed to properly address very important issues such as crime, the economy, decentralisation of government institutions, and diversification, but one must acknowledge that after many years of neglect more time is required. What is needed is a conscious effort by everyone, politicians, workers, professionals, business and the man in the street to realise that we are all on the same ship and a "hurricane" is coming.
Ernie Weston
Via e-mail