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Doctors muzzled!
Jerry Narace (Health Minister) has passed sweeping regulations that effectively gag all RHA health workers from "from commenting on national issues; from contributing to or editing newspapers; or from taking part in lectures that could be inconsistent with government policy. The regulations also give the Health Minister the final say in the handling of disciplinary appeals." - according to Newsday 2008-09-09. In the Newsday article Rajendra Persad, President of MPATT (MPATT a thorn in the government's side), condemned the regulations as an attempt to “silence the voice of doctors as professionals”.
Get a copy of the TT Express Editorial 2008-09-07 before it disappears - as these things do.
I am not a RHA health worker, so I could say what the hell I want about dat! I think it is yet another marker of a State intent on totalitarianism.
One is left to wonder if these Regulations have been rolled out in reaction to letters like Dr Steve Smith's in Newsday 2008-08-24. I'm sure that Ministry would say that the development of the Regulations preceded letters like that. If I was their media spokes person I would churn out the usual bull. Steve Smith basically put a spanner in the works of the politicians and the CMO. Somebody at the top didn't like it - it's palpable.
I'd like to be corrected by anyone as to why I should not conclude that after these regulations the Government is free to give it's unbalanced view (i.e. propaganda) about what is happening in a failed health service.
The regulations are disgusting, shameless and tells average reasonable people that the Government is afraid or unable to withstand the force of truth. The Health Service is their Archilles heel and they seek to protect it at all cost! That is the agenda - no? Is there a democracy in T&T? Why should I have to ask? The State is behaving like a Stalinist regime, on matters of Health - and quite possibly other things.
Interesting but not surprising. Can you blame the man? His idols are probably Chavez and Castro. Okay that may be an unfair statement from a clearly biased person. Come on a totally unfair statement? I think not. Its a failed health care system, that can't be spoken about, a Dengue outbreak that far succeeds the amount of cases ever seen before and were then classified as an outbreak, but the government and the Ministry of Health assures it is not an outbreak, it is Trinidad. It kind of reminds me of a saying they have about the injustices that occur daily in Africa and are shrugged off by saying “TIA- This is Africa”, no one cares. This is Trinidad my friends, we are third world and we will conform steadfast to that status.
We are also graduating so many doctors it is ridiculous, when I speak with family and friends in Trinidad, it seems like everyone and their mother is at Mount Hope at least almost everyone that I had the pleasure of going to school with in my 18 years in Trinidad. So we have more doctors that ya can count, more engineers than ya can count, more lawyers than ya can count and a horrible health care system, no infrastructure and an invasion of a basic right, freedom of speech. Oh boy! This is Trinidad.
All I have to say is, the masses are happy when their government throws them pennies and throws other people millions. Their minds are easily swayed by propaganda and rhetoric, which both the UNC and PNM proudly inundate the public with.Give them free stuff off a truck for Christmas and they forget about the murder and inflation for the year, these are the people that vote! Mr. Panday is just as guilty as Mr. Manning for the state of TnT and so are the people. There is no democracy in TnT, because the majority of the people are too short sighted to look beyond the propaganda of these people and vote for people who would help them and their families. People living in Trinidad will pay for not voting for the COP for the next 4 years. Now you know where my alliance is...it is for CHANGE!
Unfortunately, my fellow bloggers I do not see anything changing in our country in the next election, because race and politics will always be combined. We have role models - Haiti (Stripping their countries natural resources bare and devastating the environment along with their corrupt politics), Venezuela (with a leader who thinks the world should bow to him and has gone as far as to invite Russian military into the Caribbean) and Cuba (the type of regime Mr. Manning would love, so his kids or wife can take over when he is dead, She is qualified at being appointed to things). This is the outlook I have for my country. Forget trying to emulate Barbados. I dare anyone to tell me different! This is Trinidad.