I was sad yesterday, not over the Trump thing, but over the inertia, nothing happening, life as we knew it is falling apart, and no one lifts a finger to save it.
The Food & Beverage Association had a good meeting with GOA, they reported the other day, pleading for flexibility in the job market, forget reform, just give us a bit of flexibility. They also begged to extend hours of operations, now minimal with TDQ.
Nothing.
No response. Zero communication.
Meanwhile I checked:
Restaurants which are closed, not sure when re-opening: Aqua Grill, Texas de Brazil, Screaming Eagle, The Lobby.
Partly open: Chicken & Lobster, Dushi Bagels.
Closed and gone: Taste of Belgium, Hard Rock, Sweet Peppers, The turtle Cove, Denny’s.
The labor issue is huge, imagine yourself burdened by thousands of employees, with no real work for them to do. I am also talking about GOA. How demoralizing.
I swung by SIAD this week and saw, just one receptionist, turning everyone away, no more appointments at the tax office, just send an e mail to [email protected]. All public services have been reduced to a minimum, no driving licenses, nothing at DIMAS, they are all hibernating and getting paid.
If not serving the public, what do the public sector employees do??
In the private sector, where saving is a way of life, employees work 4 days a week, take off three, they are obliged to use their vacation days, no Christmas bonus, they were all told already, and they get paid accordingly, much less than before, one salary is now shared among two people.
What would happen if GOA did the same, 50% worktime reduction, for all public employees except, teachers, nurses, police, get that done, focus on nothing else, and see what happens.
The private sector has been following that recipe for 5 months now, we noticed only ATMs at Aruba Bank Hato, no personal assistance, they have cracked the whip, trying to survive.
Instead
We enjoy an alternative reality here, where two low-rated ministers, our worse performing Einsteins according to NoticiaCla survey, supported by Einstein Howell, trying to torpedo a top-rate minister in favor of spearfishing.
Aruba is the only country in the world where mid-pandemic, GOA threatens to crash over the use of harpoons, for a miniscule number of undoubtedly, buddies of the ministers.
MinInfra would agree to regulate spearfishing by law, identify the practitioners, get a list, which takes time, courtesy of the legal snails, within the framework of nature protection. The other geniuses have their pants on fire, they want it done now, with a hocus-focus dispensation.
Only in Aruba.
On another note, the MinPres made a statement last evening about threats received and stepped up security around her residence, this columnist condemns all uncivilized discourse, and wishes our leader the wisdom and strength to pull us out of the mud.
