De onlyest ting dat preventin mih from sayin ah remember when T&T had it first billion dollar budget is dat eef ah right, ah go have tuh include Eric Williams an ah doh remember he. Ah mean ah doh remember he in de discussion ah had wid mih fadder when dat billion dollar mark buss. It was ah important milestone. All ah could do is wonder when it happen. Knowin de answer important tuh dis discussion.

Why?

Well take de 2017 budget. Ah listen an watch de Minister ah Finance tell T&T de govahment plannin tuh spend 53.4 billion T&T dollars over 365 days tuh run de country. Ah was ah mess when he start sayin which ministry gettin what: National Security, 7 billion, dong from larse year; Education, 7 billion. By de time he reach who was only gettin pittance, ah was twitchin. De poor, (in more ways dan one), Minister ah Housin go be knockin orn de Minister ah National Security door, not wid ah cup tuh borrow sugar buh ah dump truck tuh borrow ah few million until next budget day.

Where all dat money does go?

Ah know dat question borderin orn dotish because people have tuh geh paid. Salaries does make up de biggest chunk ah any money de govahment does spend all doh sometimes it does look like Trinis does wuk fuh de govahment fuh free.

Ah guess what ah really askin mihself is eef de money does get spend right. Ah doh hear people in high places torkin about value fuh money no more. Eidder value happenin or who used tuh tork about it get fedup an decide tuh join de Joneses, (wink, wink).

Imbert kinda answer mih question anyway when he tork about how wutless state agencies does be managin money. I could just imagine. I does see how some agencies dat have tuh dig up de road does operate in so-called First World countries.

Was larse summer ah watch dis big big project tuh bury some kind ah cable. Man, dey was efficient in how dey block orf de roads an dig dem up. As soon as dey finish puttin dong whatever cable it was, dey patch de roads back all neat neat an ting. Inside weeks dey was diggin back up de damn roads. Is someting wid dem kind ah people. Buh does WASA even bodder wid de “neat neat” part?

At least de govahment recognize it have tuh care even eef dem state agencies don’t. How long before recognizin turn tuh action is de question.

Ah didn’t expect tuh bounce up reasons explainin why dat question important tuh answer buh since everyting connected tuh everyting else . . . .

Imbert did done finish toss arong dem massive piles ah dollar amounts in de budget an did help mih start tuh stop twitchin by blastin WASA an TTEC. Ah was still wonderin where all dem dollars does go doh when dis one artice cyatch mih eye. When ah done readin it mih new question was who need more proof ah how quick change have tuh come. Who?

Once upon ah time, like five years ago, eef people did tork about usin energy, dey wasn’t meanin hard wuk buh what was comin out de grong an makin Triniland rich, eef not all Trinis. Dem days done as Guyana go find out just know. Dey go have tuh add plenty sugar tuh de oil dey find cause dey go have tuh drink it.

Anyway, de current decline is both ah curse an blessin fuh T&T. De blessin could be long term buh only eef de curse short term. During de energy feast, nobody was tinkin ah de famine dat does always follow so bard habits was spreadin like de Zika virus. Eef people so infected by dem good times dey cyar change den all de negative tings de Global Scale Index, (GSI), article tork about go continue. It go be ah curse inside ah next curse wid no blessin in sight.

Me eh need all dat analysis doh. De GSI say Jamaica doin better dan T&T. What more motivation ah need? I ready tuh enact mih proposal fuh all Trinis between 16 an 25 years. Ah outline it before: One winter in de US, Canada or England; dey own apartment an ah job tuh get money fuh payin dey own bills; back tuh Triniland when winter done. Buh I not in charge ah nuttin besides mih torts orn dis blog so dat plan eh bearin fruit.

Meantime, dis guava season have tuh get use wise. De sixteen or so billion between how much de govahment plan tuh spend an how much money it expect tuh collect have tuh come from someplace. How much in food de country does import again?

Ah could make de case dat de Under 17 CFU tournament results is ah symptom ah dis. Only one question tuh make de tie in. Okay two: Why T&T wid all dem football fields Jack get build, not in de top five? Which one ah dem countries dat better dan it have more or better facilities? An dat one particular country ah not go name again in de top five cause it better dan T&T? Steups.

All de resources in de world cyar get yuh tuh be good. Everyting connected tuh everyting. Pull dis one string here an de fabric go unravel ah next place yuh eh even seein yet.

Ah go end de sports connection by pointin out dat de Keshorn Walcotts ah T&T does do well regardless. Dey come like dat one top five CFU Under 17 country.

Eef de de rest ah Trinbago eh want tuh get cork from all dem guava it go have tuh learn tuh do more wid less or, just do wid less. People cyar fool deyself like dat small business woman in Tobago who was discussin she business plans an say she go coast until 2018. Why 2018? Because, she say, she financial advisor tell she dat is when dis energy crisis go done. Which energy she torkin about ah wonder cause I describe two. Maybe she financial advisor name Pena an use tuh be in de spiritual advisin business?

I might need mih own advisor too oui givin how ah start out good an end up all over de place wid dis one. All ah lookin for is ah angle. I eh want tuh tork bout FATCA or dis president-versus-prime-minister ting cause me eh know eef dat is ah legitimate story. It could just bacchanal gettin watered by de press so it go keep bloomin fuh days. Imagine murders galore an people arguin bout eef de president geh approval tuh tork tuh stakeholders about crime an ah way, eef de govahment wanted, tuh remove de president. People eh focusin orn what important nah.

Orn dat note, let mih go an do de maths tuh find out eef yuh have 365 days, how much yuh have tuh spend each day fuh it tuh reach 53.4 billion. Ah should ah pay more attention in maths class.