Another minister who has hardly a gray cell in his head is Peter Taylor, Minister of Consumer Affairs. Now that is a bold statement so I'll explain.
Some weeks ago, trucks carrying flour and rice were robbed in the Beetham area, and Taylor passed it off as routine stealing. Of course, he was taken to task over his idiotic statement by the public, then after nearly a week he apologised and made some sort of excuse for his blunder.
Now he has made another similar blunder by telling consumers to grow a kitchen garden.
On the surface, it's a brilliant idea. Examine it closely and you see an idea that is as impractical as getting the dunceys to work (unless naked Columbian women are involved).
Picture the traffic situation in Trinidad (not so much Tobago). People working Port of Spain (or North generally) and living in south have to leave home at 5:00 AM or before this even. Get to work late, after being stuck in traffic from Chaguanas to Port of Spain itself.
Leave work, stuck in traffic the opposite way and getting home at the ridiculous hours of 7:00 PM or later. Then to do household chores, take care of children, do other things...
Yes Taylor, I will be in my garden from 10:00 PM onwards, planting, watering, hoeing, weeding, etc to feed my family. And when I have to do overtime at the request of supervisors, I'll be sure to let them know I have to eat so I will be in my garden.
By the way... He said for example, consumers could shift from the use of wheat flour to the use of cassava flour, which can be readily and economically produced locally. I can't make cassava flour, can you? Before making statements like these, does anyone vet your speeches? Have you set up an accessible flour mill to make available? A man with a backyard garden with 50 pounds of cassava... I wonder how much flour he is going to get?
And I wonder at over 6000 displaced Caroni farmers (with expertise and experience) being displaced for Cuban farmers!
He also said the first batch of Cuban farmers were to arrive here in July to start on the Tuckey Valley, Chaguaramas mega farm project.
Trinidad seems to have a sort of relationship with Trinidad and Tobago that is suspicious to say the least. Why is all expertise coming from there all of a sudden?
