There is a suggestion that what is needed on the Beetham is unimpeded access to the dump to rummage through garbage for the scraps of the nation. They must be able to have access to the highway so that they can vent by throwing stones at drivers that use that sector of the roadway to get to and from our capital city.
Those seeking political mileage from the Beetham incident totally ignore the stagnated water that’s in their drains, the stench from the nearby dump or the levels of poverty in the community. They ignore the danger posed by shots fired at passing cars or at law enforcement officers.
Similarly, the people who occupy vacant public housing units are seen by some as poor people in need housing for their family. Such is the view of many seeking to excuse the activities that recently caused a major disruption on the Beetham and at the Clifton Hill apartments a few days ago.
It is human nature for one to imagine the better side of human behaviour. When gun-toting men demand security money for one to work in their area rather than seek employment on the project, human nature leads one to ignore the possibility that such action is a norm in the community. When families are violently robbed, and our young men lie in pools of blood on our streets almost daily, one is tempted to blame the politicians, the economy, the church, race or gangs rather than the possibility that there are bad people with evil intent.
It is the failure to recognise evil that allowed many leaders worldwide to get away with genocide before someone or some group acts to curtail their activities. Human history has taught us that lives can be saved, and atrocities avoided if we act decisively when evil confronts us.
The Prime Minister and the Government of T&T is government for every citizen of our country regardless of race, location, education, social status or political affiliation. Their responsibility is to ensure that every citizen is free to enjoy the fruits of his labour without restriction or threat to his right to property, movement, freedom or protection under the law.
The people of the Beetham ought not to be offered silly inanities like access to the dump or highway. Instead, their communities should be protected from the noisy highway by a wall. Their stagnated water ways ought to be replaced with proper drainage. Their employment opportunities ought to be much more than a few Cepep jobs or the derivatives from scrummaging through our garbage. They ought to be respected and treated with dignity.
They, like every other citizen in T&T, must not be allowed to break the law and disrupt the lives of other citizens regardless of their economic circumstances. The message to the people of T&T must be that lawlessness will not be tolerated. It is in time like these that one’s leadership abilities is demonstrated. One may wish to recall the mantra “we love you, we care for you”.
God bless our nation.
Steve Alvarez
