Moontown

ORDER NO, 17

RESOLUTION TO APPROVE THE GUARANTEE BY THE GOVERNMENT

OF THE PAYMENT OF THE PRINCIPAL SUN OP TWENTY-TWO

MILLION DOLLARS AND INTEREST THEREON IN RESPECT OF A

BOND ISSUE TO THE TRANSPORT TO RBTT MERCHANT BANK  LIMITED.

The Honourable Member for St. Lucy: Mr. D. St. E.  Kellman: Sir, it is important that the Transport Board provides the delivery of service to Barbados. One has to recognize the importance of this service, to the productivity of the country.  I have always argued that het Transport Board is one of he social services, that we have to keep in Barbados and we have to ensure that it functions effectively.

I honestly believe that an issue like this should have been dealt with when we dealt with the Estimates a couple months ago, and we should not be before Parliament now seeking to deal with an issue like this.  Sir, everybody in Barbados knows that the numbers of buses that are currently run by the Transport Board are inadequate. Everybody knows that they are losing money. There is no reason, after preparing Estimates that we should be here seeking to finance the Transport Board when we knew, prior to the preparation of the Estimates that this requirement is needed.

Sir, this particular action is not needed, better could have been served, and if we had done this months ago. I am also making the point that the Transport Board as it stands right now is operating at 56 per cent of its capacity, in terms of vehicles.

Sir, what is even more striking is that the Transport Board, even though operating at 56 per cent of its capacity, has a situation where, whenever the tourism sector needs buses, the Transport Board, instead of following its obligation that the taxpayers of this country pay for, send the buses to the tourism sector, instead of sending them for the productive sector of this country. Sir, it is wrong.

This is one of the reasons and I will argue on that particular point… Whenever you frustrate workers and you threaten workers’ jobs, and that is what occurred, Sir, whenever they turned up in the bus stand in the morning or evening and they do not find the buses, then they are forced to buy cars. This means that it one does a careful analysis, one would understand that the problem facing the Transport Board is the lack of proper planning.

Sir, they have enough ZM buses, BT buses and taxis to adequately service the tourism industry and there is no need for the Transport Board to be competing with the private sector in the tourism industry, when that industry is too well-served, according to the critics.

Sir, because the Transport Board is supposed to be servicing the buses for people in this country, we decide to take the buses, ignore the productive sectors and the productive people, and send the buses to the tourism industry. Sir, that decision has caused the Transport Board to be in a worse position than it should have been in, Sir.

If the Transport Board members are serious about their mandate, and if the Government is serious about their mandate, the first thing they would do is to stop the charters and stop depriving the workers of Barbados for having the Transport Board as a means of transport.

Sir, this has nothing to do with increased capacity of disposable income. That is why the Government could come here and brag that since 1994, they have been able to double the numbers of vehicles on the road. Do you know why? Job security.  People had to give up buying a piece of land and building a house, to protect their jobs, by buying reconditioned cars, so that they could get to work, because they could not rely on the Transport Board, and it hurts.

Sir, I represent a constituency where we would have been taught that when you go to school the first thing you try to get is a piece of land, then a house and then a car.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, in 1995, L1234 was the number. By 2006, I am seeing vehicles mark L2612 and higher. What has happened is that my constituents, and I hope that the former Minister who used to sit to this place would now listen to this argument, who challenged me on this particular issue, that in less than 11 years, the number of cars in St. Lucy have doubled.

Since 1994, I have not seen 100 house spots in St. Lucy, but I have seen more that 1 400 cars. I have not seen the same thing in relation to houses in St. Lucy. But you know what? Sir, my constituents who have been properly trained by their parents have now been disobeying their parents and now buying cars, instead of houses and land because they have to protect their jobs.

Sir, this is a very serious charge because you cannot live in a car. My constituents, who knew the importance of owning a piece of land, cannot now get the piece of land but they can get a reconditioned car, all because of bad transport policy in this country.
I am saying, Sir, that if this Government understands the importance of transportation to work, they would reverse that trend and any new Democratic Labour Party Government would help to reverse the trend.

Sir, everybody knows that a house appreciates in value, if it is the right house, that land appreciates in value, but a car depreciates. The people of St. Lucy are not happy to buy an asset that is going to depreciate. If better could have been served, they would continue to listen to their parents and buy the assets that would appreciate.  We, as a Government would have to change these things.

Sir, it is not fair to the masses of people in Barbados to be, as they would say, ‘spending money and the money going up in smoke’, because that is exactly what occurs when you buy a vehicle. When you buy a piece of land or a house, you get an appreciation. It appreciates in value.

Hear what I am saying Sir. It is regrettable that somebody believes that they should have two cars and a house and a property but the first right of another citizen should be a car. Sir, we force our people to buy cars, and allow outsiders to buy land.

Somebody asked me how many cars I have. Ask me how much land I have. I have more land than cars. Sir, because I have land, it does not mean that I should believe I am the only person to have land. Sir, poor people have a right to have land and that is why I am arguing in that particular way, because you could do without the car, but you cannot do without the land.

Sir, I am saying that it is because of the bad transport system in this country, my brothers and sisters are now forced to see a car as a piece of land and a house. It is now getting so regrettable that some of them are forced to buy the car, they cannot get the land and some of them now have to resort to living in the car.

Please, you do not know that is happening? I am sorry.

As I was saying, Sir,… Do you want to buy some? I will sell you some. You said that I stole all, so why you want to buy some, and still borrowing to buy some.

Sir, I was just negotiating a little deal to sell the Honourable Member for St. James central a piece of beach front property. As you know, they are very famous to say that I sold land on the west coast in St. James, when I never owned a piece of land there.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, Are you organizing a deal? Then, you go outside and organize the deal.

We will speak in private corners. If you want a piece, I can negotiate that for you, do not mind that I sold all.

Sir, the point is that I am here to deal with the people’s business.

The people’s business, as it stands now, is that every evening or every morning, the commuters, whether they are from Christ Church or St. Lucy, have to be struggling to find transport and when their jobs are threatened they have to find a car. Sir, I would not reflect on what we said last week, but sometimes they buy the car and then they cannot find the money to pay for the insurance. What we need is to find a proper Transport Board bus system so that the citizens of Barbados could believe that they could get up on mornings, go to the bus stop and get a bus.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, in rural Barbados, in a place like St. Lucy, if you see the 6 o’clock bus, you are not going to see the 7 o’clock bus, and if you see the 7 o’clock bus, you are not going to see the 8 o’clock bus. I am saying that it is not fair for those hardworking people in St. Lucy to have to compete among themselves for a transport system that is not working in their interest.

Sir, whenever we come to this House, the people from the north helps to provide the money to subsidize the Transport Board. Sir, if the people from the north are subsidizing and others are getting, then they need to put in some more so people of St. Lucy could get too, they deserve better, and that is why I am here to represent their case.

Sir, I am not going to be selfish. I am saying that rural Barbados and all the others who are suffering at the hands of the Transport Board deserve better. Sir, that is why, I do not have a problem with the subsidy when it comes to the Transport Board because you cannot have free secondary education and not add transport to it.

Sir, these are the things that I have no problem in supporting. Sir, if you ask me if I support LIAT, the answer is yes, I support LIAT too. However, at the same time, I have to understand that I have to build a base which has to be the Transport Board.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, we should not be in here arguing today after we have guaranteed this $22 million that the Transport Board will still be short. Sir, I am saying if the $22 million in inadequate, then let us change the Resolution. Sir, we need to know what is required of the Transport Board so that the workers of Barbados can get to work without hindrance.

Mr. Speaker, we came in here on many occasions guaranteeing money for other entities that will not increase the productivity of the country. Sir, the workers of Barbados are the missing link. If the workers of Barbados are not treated fairly and the stress, which is inflicted on them on a daily basis because of Government policies et cetera, is not removed, the productive sectors of this country will not function effectively and stress will remain within the economy.

Sir, it you remove the stress from the workers, the productive sectors will produce much better and then we can think of moving from an 8-hour day to a 24-hour day. Sir, it does not make any sense having a situation where the workers are stressed for eight hours and then you want to increase the number of hours available to work. Sir, they first have to first correct the base problem.

Sir, the biggest problem facing Barbados today is its transport system which is also impacting upon the capacity for the economy to generate the necessary foreign exchange to make us happy people in this country.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am told about the damage done by the commuters to the Transport Board buses, that might be true, but the damage done by the commuters cannot be as great as the damage done by the bad roads in the
country. That is why I am calling on the Minister of Finance to give the Minister of Public Works and Transport the necessary money to repair the roads in Barbados so that the maintenance cost at the Transport
Board will not be so high.

The Honourable Member for St. James Central is telling me that the roads in Barbados have no impact on the Transport Board buses, and that is duck excuse. Sir, I know that the Minister of Works and Transport would not make that statement because the Honourable Member knows better. The Ministry of Public Works and Transport needs some more money to repair the road on which the buses travel. It is true that the Honourable Member represents the constituency of St. James central where all rich people live and they do not have any bad roads so much so that in that particular constituency they even have tiles on the road, so the Honourable Member would not understand what are bad roads. It is only the people in rural Barbados, like the Honourable Member for St. Thomas, that do not live with the type of luxury, who would appreciate this particular point.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, outside of St. Lucy, only the Honourable Member for St. Thomas, and probably the Honourable Members for St. John and St. Philip North could probably hold my hand.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, the point I am making is that if we are serious about increasing the life of the Transport Board buses, one of the first things we have to do is to ensure that we repair the roads of Barbados so that we could have the buses without those broken axles and so on.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, the other thing is that Government cannot complain about the amount of money that they are subsidizing the Transport Board with because when one looks at the fuel bill of the Transport Board, which belongs to Government anyhow, and one were to take off all of the charges from Government, one would be shocked to see how the fuel bill at the Transport Board will be reduced.

Sir, I am saying that the cost of fuel at the Transport Board has been over-inflated because of Government policy. If we want to truly understand the true subsidy for the Transport Board, then it should have duty-free concessions where things like the excise tax is removed so that the charges would not be inflated, and we would then know the true subsidy. It does not make sense for the Government to take from the Transport Board with one hand and to give back with the other. I am saying that it is because of things like these that the Transport Board is in this particular position.

Sir, I hope that when the Honorable Member speaks again that he would admit that this guarantee is not the amount that is necessarily required to put the Transport Board in a functioning position to service the whole of Barbados, because after we get these buses rural Barbados, including St. John, St. Lucy and all those outlying districts and parishes will still be crying out for lack of services. Sir, it does not make sense for us to know what we need to solve the problem and come in here and adopt a piecemeal approach to the particular problem.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, any Government that understands the meaning of social transformation would adopt the holistic policy pronounced by the Opposition and deal with it because they would understand how it would impact on the productive forces in this country. Sir, if we need, as I said before, to increase from an 8-hour day to a 24-hour day, then we have to take other things into consideration, and the key thing is the worker.

Sir, the first question that has to be asked is how are we going to satisfy the transport needs of the worker when we make that necessary shift. Sir, if we cannot appreciate that point it is a waste of time shifting from an 8-hour day to a 24-hour day because you would be impeding the workers of Barbados and you would also be creating another problem.

Sir, when you shift from an 8-hour day to a 24-hour day, then the demands on the Transport Board are going to be greater and if you do not satisfy the demands of the Transport Board, then more persons will be forced to buy cars. Mr. Deputy Speaker, the question we must ask is, do we want to see a Barbados with everybody owning a vehicle or do we want to see a Barbados with a proper transport system and people having house lots and houses.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, people’s disposable incomes would only match the purchase of one item and therefore the car would have become the more important of the two, which would allow persons to keep their jobs, everybody would tend to buy the car because they believe that since they have a job, that some time in the future they might be able to get a piece of land, if it becomes available.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am saying that even though I support this guarantee to support the Transport Board, that it is insufficient and does not serve the useful purpose, to which it should be serving. I would also say that we need to understand that the problems facing the Transport Board might appear to be minor to the Government but that they are major problems because of the fact that they are impacting upon the lives of the people of Barbados. Sir, I know this Government does not understand what I am talking about but at least this side and the people of Barbados understand what I am talking about.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, we must be more caring towards the masses of people in Barbados because of the fact that too many of our people have to depend on the Transport Board. In this regard, the masses are subsidizing the Transport Board and in return, are not getting the service they expect.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, another concern is that Government cannot be coming to Parliament and guaranteeing money for the Transport Board, without recognizing that the minibuses and the ZRs are all part of the transport system and are serving the same purpose as that of the Transport Board. Therefore, it is not fair for Government to come parliament, to provide money for the Transport Board, in circumstances where the Transport Board can have proper bus terminals, while the masses of people, who travel by ZRs and minibuses, must be put into other areas, which, when the rain falls, become very muddy. Sir, these areas look as though there had pigs running around there.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, the Opposition is demanding better facilities for the ZRs and minibuses and therefore this Democratic Labour Party, which is not recognized in this Parliament, but which is recognized throughout the country, has to bring  policies to correct those things that are being done by this Government, as we do not expect them to be done by the other side, when one considers the amount of revenue this Government would have had since 1994 but would  have not corrected any of those things.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, if the Government has not done it in the last 12 years, it would be impossible for them to do it now in the last two years of their remaining life. Therefore, the Democratic Labour Party, as a party, would have to correct those misdemeanors and would ensure that the masses of people in Barbados would be able to achieve what they need.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am not going to waste any more of this Honourable House’s time. I hope the point has been made to Government and that they would understand that point. Sir, the point made was that the Transport Board is in need but that this $22 million in Guarantee is inadequate, and that we need to get more money for the Transport Board. We need to ensure that the operators and owners of the ZRs and minibuses must have better facilities in which to operate. They are also Barbadians and they are doing a service for Government. Therefore, Government should recognize their contribution to the transportation system.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I would want to say that sometimes those ZRs and minibus workers might do a number of foolish things but if we had to do a calculation based on productivity, it would show that these are the most productive workers in Barbados.

I am not saying that the PSV’s workers do not do foolishness; they do, but at the same time, it would be folly for me not to admit that based on production, they are the most productive workers in Barbados.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, I am saying that the ZR5 and minibus operators need to clean up their act but at the same time, they need to be recognized for their
productivity. Sir, the day that we could get Barbadians, as a whole, to produce at the rate at which those ZRs and minibus operators operate, we would see that Barbados would be one of the most productive countries in the world.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, when we see an important statistic we should not ignore it. In a country, where we claim that people do not produce, when we see a group of people who are producing, we must acknowledge it. Furthermore, though we acknowledge it, if they are doing wrong, we must also tell them.

Mr. Deputy Speaker, that is why I am here saying to them today that they have a number of positive values but that they must never allow the negative to overrun those positives. In addition, in a country that is crying out about  productivity, when one looks, the PSV’s workers are some of the most productive workers in the world but it would seem to me that sometimes they do not know it.

Sir, I would want to assure these persons that there are people who have recognized their productivity but I would want them to build on those positives and to continue adding to those positive values. Sir, at the same time, a caring Government must recognize and must appreciate the positives that they are doing for the transportation system, and not only the negatives. Government, therefore, must try to remove the negative values, impart the positives, and add to those positives that have been delivered by those persons.

I thank you, Mr. Deputy Speaker.

Moon Town’s Restaurant

Planning a trip to Barbados? Are you a local tourist? A visit to Moon Town would be incomplete without sampling its delicious cuisine.

The waves lapping the shores, the warm breeze, some soothing music playing in the background - you don’t get more romantic than Moon Town.

There are pleanty to choose from the delicious cusine. Moon Town is opened 7 days a week, all day and all night. Stop by for your home-made breakfast, your finger-licking lunch and a romantic dinner.

Our Spacious Bar
One of the most unique bars in St. Lucy. It offers an experience for each of your five senses. It offers four-for-one specials on Banks Beers and an impressive wine list awaits you.

The bar is opened from 7 p.m. to when the last man leaves. Patrons can also enjoy a variety of cocktails, rum and liquer. The bar is a fun atmosphere. it is the only place to be for an enjoyable night in Moon Town.

Internet Cafe
The only Internet Cafe in Moon Town. You can access the Internet and have access to international calls. There are several computer terminals where you can work from in a private setting.

You can surf the Net using AOL, Internet Explorer, Netscape, Google, Firefox, Yahoo; send or receive E-Mails, use your favorite Word Processor, Spreadsheet, Database, or just Chat, while you sip your favourite beverage.

Welcome to Moon Town !

Moon Town is situated in the north of Barbados and is the smallest town that can be found anywhere in the world. It is by square footage the most dynamic town with the most customers  worldwide.

Moon Town was named some nine years ago by Member of Parliament for the constituency of St. Lucy, Barbados, Denis Kellman.

The former name, Half Moon Fort  was changed after the parliamentary representative recognised that Barbadians like to shop in towns, hence the renaming of that rich community  to Moon Town.

The rural community is a fishing village that is very similar to a village in St. Thomas where the sea is situated on the opposite side of the road.  It has a fantastic view of the seaside. This view has been enhanced with the construction of three decks at Moon Town Enterprises  Inc. which gave customers a choice of how much view of the sea they need.

At Moon Town, you can find a supermarket, a bakery, a night club, a restaurant, hardware store and a deli.  It is a convenience that customers do not have to pay for.

It is evident that Moon Town is a place to work, live and shop because of the competitive prices, spacious surrondings and warm hospitality.

In Moon Town, goods are purchased in large quantities, with no high mark-up or price gouging. It can boost of having the best prices on Banks Beers and many household products.

One of the hallmarks of Moon Town is to ensure that  visitors and locals alike get the right goods, at the right price and at the right place.

This is the official blogsite of Moon Town Enterprises, Inc. located in the north of Barbados, West Indies. The sole author of this weblog is Mr. Denis Kellman, Member of Parliament for St. Lucy.  Denis is also CARICOM Ambassador and Chief Negotiator.