FACT...the average T&T secondary school is allocated less than $2 million to run its facilities for an entire year. This money pays plant repair bills, utility bills, buys chemicals and equipment for labs, runs the administrative office, supports extra-curricular programmes and the list goes on.

So $2 million for a hoisted national flag to invoke ’nationalpride’’ is irrecoverably absurd.

We know that expenditure on non-priorities is a hallmark of PNM administrations but do they really have to keep up that tradition? Would Dr Williams, the party’s founder, really be offended if they evolved in the direction of exercising frugal spending habits?

The truth is nothing has changed in the department of PNM financial management from the 1950s version of the PNM to now. Therefore, no one should be surprised at their adamant claim that $2 million spent on a flag is worth the money.

The PNM’s parliamentary majority government (hoisted into office by minority public support) bought and hoisted the ’mega-flag’’ at the Crawford Stadium in spite of the ’reality’’ that its administration has undertaken to running the country on deficit budgets. They waste money and resources then raise taxes (especially indirect taxes) to support their habit.

Foolish expenditure such as the $2 million flag is the side-effect of PNM rule in a democratic country where the majority of citizens are wholly passive- easy to walk on so to speak.

So next must come the geographically correct balancing act of installing similarly sized flags at all other national stadia-Dwight Yorke Stadium in Bacolet, Larry Gomes Stadium in Arima, Manny Ramjohn Stadium in Marabella.

God forbid the PNM government further trample upon social equity as they sinfully accomplished with their one-off mega National Library, erected in Port of Spain alone, as if to suggest that that place alone is the centre of all knowledge and learning on this twin-island state.

B Joseph

via e-mail