By Shabna Rahman and Pushpa Balgobin
Scores of sugar workers yesterday demonstrated in front of Public Buildings, protesting the planned closure of the Wales Sugar Estate while expressing skepticism at government’s statements that plans are in the pipeline to cushion the impact of the shuttering of the operations.
The demonstration in the city followed strike action earlier yesterday by Wales sugar factory workers who vowed to continue until President David Granger meets with them and finds a solution. As the workers demonstrated at around 6:30am, the factory gates remained shut.
“This is a hurtful situation,” a young father said. “The government promised us that they would reduce poverty, but they are increasing it in this community.”
In Georgetown, the protesters at the Public Buildings demonstrated before the sitting of the National Assembly and were joined by parliamentarians from the opposition PPP/C. They demanded answers from government while also vowing to continue their protests.
Over 250 persons stood outside, some holding placards opposing the closure. Some of the slogans on the placards included “No study yet Wales closure”, “Estate closure lies and more lies”, “Who will get the land?” and “Keep Wales, save sugar.”
With emotions running high, workers were even more frustrated that members of government refused to meet with them outside to “put faces to closing people’s livelihoods” as one worker put it.
Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo joined the picketers as did former President Donald Ramotar.
Government on Monday announced its intention to close the Wales Sugar Estate, the first major decision it has taken on the beleaguered industry which has seen slumping production over the last decade and swingeing debt. According to a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture, the Wales estate is projected to operate at a loss of between $1.6B and $1.9B this year. With immediate effect, there will be no further land preparation and planting. As the estate’s cultivation is reaped, the land would be retired and kept for diversification ventures.
Government has said the Wales operation was not feasible and plans are in the pipeline to cushion the impact of its closure.
Yesterday, several workers expressed anger at the decision and charged that election promises were broken. One said they lacked faith that the government has any real “cushion” for them.
Agriculture Minister Noel Holder had said that there were “substantial” vacancies at the Uitvlugt factory.
Workers pointed out that the recent report emanating from the Commission of Inquiry into the sugar industry did not recommend estate closures. According to one worker, the report showed that Wales was not the most derelict estate. He said that Enmore and Skeldon were haemorrhaging money and the factories across the estates are all old and in desperate need of repair.
The man said there was no rhyme or reason as to why Wales was selected for closure and stated that government needs to pronounce on the “cushion.” He added that “families don’t eat promises.”
Another worker blamed many of Wales’ issues on poor management and said the request to engage government was to air grievances from the workers’ perspective. He told Stabroek News that the Interim Management Committee headed by the Guyana Sugar Corporation’s (GuySuCo) Chief Executive Officer Errol Hanoman comprises persons who would have been at the helm during some of the industry’s worst sugar production years.
When the sitting of the National Assembly commenced, the workers remained outside the building and at this point, government supporters who had gradually gathered as the sugar workers began to disperse said that the fault did not lie with the David Granger administration.
There were exchanges between the two sets of persons with government supporters telling the sugar workers that there is nothing they could do at this point and they should find alternative work. Sugar workers were overheard attempting to explain the complexities of the industry and the lack of employment in the Region that would compensate and absorb the 1600 estate employees.
Meantime, earlier in the day at the Wales estate, workers vented their frustration. “When this estate close, I don’t know what I would do. I’m thinking all the time how I would provide for my family,” one man told Stabroek News. “I have a one-year-old child and one can of milk is $4000. I don’t know how I would manage,” he said.
According to a 35-year-old father of seven school-aged children, “We wuking and it hard, much less when we ain’t wuking. Right now I don’t have money at home, I waiting fuh Friday to collect pay.”
“This is very frustrating, its desperation and it bussing up we head, everybody only stressing out. We can’t face the pressure. We can’t even look after we children. How can they [government] look for a bright future fuh we children,” he questioned.
According to the man, he and the other workers would be “willing to give up we yearly money so they can use it to fix the estate instead of teking away we bread.”
Another worker said it would have been better if the government had given them a “time frame and if we don’t perform then they would close. If they had done that, then we woulda try we best to do well.”
“This has nothing to do with politics, this is about survival,” another man said. One said that Jagdeo’s visit to the community showed that he “has a heart.”
Cane harvester Dale Austin said he worked at the estate in 1991 and left in 1994 “due to bad management.” After the elections he returned to work and “I feel that these people should use their humanitarian feelings for the over 1700 workers that they deprive of jobs. They should save a village from people selling drugs and getting involved in crime…”
Unjustifiable
Workers declared that closing the factory because it is old is unjustifiable as the factory was the “third best” in the country and was more efficient than the one at Uitvlugt where the cane would now be sent.
“The factory has the ability to produce 180 to 200 tonnes cane per day. And we have a stronger workforce. Many times workers from Wales have to go and back up Uitvlugt,” one told Stabroek News. According to the workers, it was also found that last year, the estate was the best for saving fuel.
According to them, GuySuCo director Yusuf Abdool visited the estate two weeks ago and complimented them for their good work and told them to keep it up. They are concerned about what would happen to the rest of the workers if some would be taken to Uitvlugt.
During the elections campaign, the government promised to create jobs but now they were “taking away jobs,” one worker said. According to them, the estate was a “food basket” for everyone and there are no other jobs available.
Last year, they said, the production target of the estate was met but yet government is claiming that the estate was not producing. They expressed shock that “up to last week, we plough land and plant cane and suddenly we wake up and hear the estate would close.”
The workers emphasised that the closure would have a tremendous impact on families because there is no plan in place. “When the inquiry come out, with over 3000 page, they [government] throw it aside because the inquiry said no estate would close. So what they pay all this money for and they can’t live up to the outcome of the inquiry,” one man questioned.
The workers called on Abdool to resign and blamed him for the decline of the estate.
“It is hard for us, we have to maintain our families and we have bills, taxes and installments to pay. How are we going to make it,” one questioned as others cheered loudly in agreement to the point raised by their colleague.
