President of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) Komal Chand has expressed confidence that the recovery of the sugar industry would begin this year.
Chand, whose union represents some 18,000 workers on a number of sugar estates across the country, said he was disappointed in the production over the past six years, but is upbeat that with the backing of the government, 2012 will be the year sugar production increases.
The fixing of the Skeldon Factory is expected to bring about the turnaround in the production of sugar.
The factory is expected to be completed before the commencement of the second crop which is in July.
GAWU President Komal Chand addressing workers at the National Park
“Indeed, it can be so if a quantity of sugar not less than 300,000 tons can be produced by the end of 2013 in keeping with the industry’s present resources and the current price of sugar in the overseas market,” Chand said.
Government is plugging Gy$ 4 billion into GuySuCo to ensure the financial viability of the sugar industry. The money is critical to the industry, and it is hoped that it will cushion capital works that are required in certain areas, along with a value for money audit.
But Chand cautioned sugar workers about the opposition, who he said are wolves in sheep clothing. GAWU is peeved by the intervention of the Alliance For Change (AFC) Chand said, contending that the party is seeking to undermine workers’ rights and trade unionism.
“Their attention is drawn to the attempts by leaders and activists of the AFC to seize on the genuine grievances of some sections of our workforce no doubt to promote their political ends. We have fended them off so far,” said Chand.
He cautioned the workers to be aware of such actions, calling the AFC “wolves in sheep clothing”. According to Chand, the AFC has revealed an anti-working class and anti-trade union tendency.
