By STEVE ALVAREZ
Trinidad & Tobago continues to struggle with keeping the country clean mainly because of outdated practices. With limited resources, communities must employ modern approaches to old jobs.
Instead of lots of people with brush cutters cutting grass along the streets, it is cheaper and more efficient to have modern mechanical grass cutting machines with extended arms to cut grass on different terrain and around obstacles.
Communities ought to purchase small street sweepers with vacuum attachments to clean the roads and drains. Garbage collection is a major area for modernization.
In every community there should be large collection bins in areas where people throw their garbage bags for collection. These special bins allow for easy pick up by the trucks designed specifically for these bins.
There is also a need for modern street signage. Every community should not only have street signs, but the major roads should have exceptionally large well-lit signage indicating the way to the villages and towns in the area.
Once again, I must bring to the attention of those in authority how essential it is to have State issued licence identification plates.
The idea that anyone with paint and a piece of plastic or metal can make a vehicle identification plate is insane. That allows for criminal activity and impedes the police from identifying vehicles with accuracy.
Lastly the county has all but lost confidence in our system of justice. There ought to be a return to community courts, and a plan for quick justice that includes plea bargaining for reduced sentences.
There must be a board of judges or lawyers employed by the State to regularize property registration and ownership. Every parcel of land ought to be properly identified and assigned to an owner.
The board of judges ought to have the power to deal with disputes and arrive at a legitimate owner. Property deed of titles needs to be modern documents that cannot be easily duplicated like birth certificates.
There must be electronic processing of immigration documents and the end of the long paper forms.
If Trinidad & Tobago is to emerge from its present level of inefficiency and ridiculous costs as well as nepotism, there must be a change to modern equipment and managerial practices.
God Bless Our Nation
