Letter: Who fooling who?

Dear Sir: In St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) we have a saying, “When something is too good to be true, it’s no good!” I have never heard so much nonsense coming from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) about how they determine SVG halved undernourishment ahead of the 2015 deadline. So, if we replace food with cars, they are basically saying there are more cars in the SVG; therefore, everybody has a car. Well, the rich man may have 10 or 20 cars. It does not means that everyone has a car or people stop walking. This is so absurd when people know that agriculture in SVG has been destroyed by the government. How did the minister (politician) put it? Agriculture is dead and a thing of the past! They have taken away arable farmlands in Belisle, Peter’s Hope, Buccma, Argyle, Georgetown, and Green Hill from the farmers. Under their watch they failed to spray the bananas; thus Black Sigatoka and Moko disease destroyed the banana industry. Unemployment is at its worst in living memory. The lingering global economic recession has kept remittances to SVG at bay. Please, FAO, where are the people getting the money to purchase imported goods? As the late Brother Bob said, “Who feels it knows it!” And the people in SVG are feeling it! Yes, a few people are doing well, but as a whole the country is worse off than ever. SVG is the only nation in the western hemisphere with four consecutive years of negative or no growth in its economy. The likelihood of a fifth straight year of negative or no growth in the economy is about to club SVG over the head. Plus the eight or more years of deficit budgets presented to the nation by the government. But somehow they magically have data to show SVG has attained the World Food Summit goal of halving the absolute number of hungry people by 2015. This reminds me of the quote attributed to the 19th-century British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and made popular by Mark Twain and others, "Lies, damned lies, and statistics!" Is it statistically possible to achieve such a goal when all indications on the ground in SVG show differently? Is this a case of idiocy masquerading as wishful thinking in SVG? A few things are obvious. The weak argument for attaining the goal is supported by influential data from the government and flawed methodology. Did I say influential data? Let’s make that self gratifying data! A simple visit to SVG by the staff of the FAO and the truth would have slapped them in the face, like how the Royal SVG policeman pimp slap I-pa. But instead of saying “Sing Bout Dat,” it would have been “Award Dat”! It was a tossup between calling this letter, “Lots of belly – Part II” and “Who fooling who?” because something is wrong with this picture and some people really have belly. Even more so, boy, they boldface yo know! In the end, I opt with “Who fooling who?” as “De Man Age” aka Mr Age rightfully put it, “Who fooling who, who deceiving who?” SVG and the FAO, “Who fooling whom, who deceiving whom?” Peace and justice and get real. Lenford O’Garro Washington