St Augustine MP Prakash Ramadhar says it is a shame that there could not have been a more mature approach towards the implementation of the property tax.
“I think it is a shame that we could not have had a more mature approach, especially from the Minister of Finance where it was obvious they were acting illegally when they threatened the population where they could be prosecuted if they did not file these forms. The court has clearly stated that there is no legal basis upon which you could have threatened or indeed prosecute anyone and that is what that effort was about.”
He said there was much talk about who won and who didn’t “but I think the people of T&T won in that no state, no government should ever threaten prosecution without lawful basis and the court ruled on that”.
Ramadhar was speaking at yesterday’s launch of a new initiative called Food For All: God’s Own, at Helping Hands Recreation Ground, St Augustine.
He said T&T has been “over taxed” and moves to tax homes where people were already fearful having lost their jobs or where their disposable income was minimal was putting them in a more fearful state.
“To put that fear factor in the one place that they’re supposed to be comfortable...I do not believe we should pursue property taxation.”
Meanwhile, on the tree-planting initiative, Ramadhar said T&T was a paradise that was being destroyed daily.
He said fruit trees will be planted in public spaces throughout St Augustine and the country.
The fruits trees—cashew, pomegranate, moringa, pommerac, African peanut and others were donated by the Ministry of Agriculture.
Ramadhar said it was important for the country to become self-sufficient. He said there must be a change in attitude towards agriculture.
When you start undermining a member of the Judiciary, you undermine all of the Judiciary.
According to Ramadhar, also an attorney, T&T’s democracy is very fragile.
He said, “We have seen the attacks on all sides in relation to the JLSC and the Chief Justice. We cannot afford, at this time for the country to lose faith even further in our judicial arm. If we lose faith, then we truly will have mayhem and anarchy.”
On the matter of Justice Frank Seepersad and the allocation of cases, Ramadhar said it was important not to demonise because of disagreement.
“I am not speaking on his (Seepersad) behalf but read that judge’s judgments in almost all of the decisions he has given. He has shown himself to be very robust, where the rights of the people are always protected by him. He leans, if there is anything at all, in favour of the people’s rights. That is his job and duty as a judge and you can’t hold on because the ruling is unhappy for you and start demonising him because it is an attack on all of the Judiciary.”
He said the country needed to pause as it was heading down a terrible path.
