Political Leader of the Congress of the people (COP) Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan says there is clearly a lack of political will on the part of leaders in T&T to collaborate meaningfully to place the nation on a path of stability and growth.
She said 2017 was yet another year which tested the country’s resolve with the increasing incidents of violent crime, job losses and a stagnant economy and to further compound the problem, citizens witnessed the non-constructive hyper-partisanship in our nations’ parliament.
This formed part of her 2018 message to the country.
She said on the positive side, however, there were triumphs in the face of many adversities in the past year.
She said, The Trinidad and Tobago Flag flew proudly in 2017 with Gold medals from Paralympian Akeem Stewart and the men’s 4x400m T&T relay team at the IAAF World Championship. In addition, after a long-fought fight for the protection of young girls from early/forced marriage, the legal age for marriage was raised to 18 years, thanks to the work by some of Trinbago’s powerful and fearless women in faith-based, community-based and non-governmental organisations.”
She added: “This demonstrates that whatever lies ahead in 2018 will be met by some of the most intelligent, innovative, brave and resolute citizens tirelessly determined to put country first towards building a future that realises the full potential of our diverse Trinidad and Tobago. It is clear that the failure of the business-as-usual politics based on race and rewards will not allow us to emerge from the crisis this country faces. What is needed more than ever is for citizens to stand shoulder- to-shoulder in an effort to secure our nation’s future.
Seepersad-Bachan said she is hopeful that the country will all rise to the challenge of demanding more accountability from our nation’s leaders and more patriotism to work together to arrive at sustainable solutions to societal ills such as crime, violence and poverty, the country’s economic development and diversification thrust and the perennial problems in the health sector.
“Let us put country first and demonstrate that together, we can be that creative force that can change the history of the world in 2018 and beyond,” she said.