Missing the larger picture

Political correctness gift-wrapped in protectionist policies has become the dread of the private sector when dealing with stubborn, if not, shallow policy makers. Wary of the deepening financial posture of these isles, dedicated businessmen warn our men of wisdom on the hill that the proposed five-year stay limit would be counterproductive to current and future investments. It seems, however, that this effort has fallen on deaf ears.

The private sector raises this and other concerns because of our apparent penchant to ruin windows of opportunities in lasting investments, the very foundation upon which we create wealth and allow the ensuing positive effect of jobs creation for our people. It seems that everything that must be done to encourage investment must necessarily be scribbled in statutory mandates, i.e., minimum wage, stay limit, etc. Hardly have we allowed for reasoned analysis, premised on a set of facts, to guide deliberative discussions on these issues.

As a result of constant statutory mandates, we end up stifling expansion of current investments while speaking from both sides of our mouths on future investments. What a warped sense of investment which only happens in these tiny isles. And if policy makers have any iota of doubt of the disservice they’ve done to current investors, it would give each of you a rude awakening to find out why the shut down of more than 2,000 businesses here over the last two years. We wonder how many more are on the wings to do likewise.

This apparent unwillingness to organize our house so we can collectively chart our way through these difficult times only make things much more difficult to institute stable investment policies that our policy makers have seen fit to derail with half-cocked measures. Is this the legacy you wish to leave behind for posterity? Is the ruination of wealth and jobs creation your agenda to ensure that the more than 400-600 high school graduates are in fact jobless and unproductive upon leaving campus. Whatever happened to all the towering speeches about forging a brighter tomorrow for our children. Is joblessness and abject poverty the answer to their future?

Revenue generation has plunged so triggered by the degenerative effects of the Asian Crisis. You need not look further than the department of finance to figure this out nor does it take the brains of a rocket scientist to come to grips with the living reality that our revenue generation has gone down hill and continues to contract beyond our wildest imaginings. For once in your political career, please buckle down and weed out politics so you can view this issue from an economics standpoint. We hope such an exercise would grant you a better glimpse of the financial posture of these islands and the dire need for real leadership. Si Yuus Maase`!