Commentary
Newsday
STEVE ALVAREZ
To many worldwide, Rishi Sunak’s rise to change into Prime Minister of Britain on Divali Day is a victory for people of East Indian ancestry.
Many felt a way of pride that somebody accepted by some as Asian is now essentially the most powerful man within the British Empire.
One media house published that his wealth is estimated at over £730 million makes him richer than the Royal’s whose wealth is reported to be about £370 million.
While the main focus could also be on the wealth and race of PM Sunak, many have missed crucial reason for his rise to power. He got the position based on merit. This Stanford graduate has an excellent mind.
Perhaps the time is pertinent to take a look at other successful people seen as representatives of minority races. Lloyd J. Austin is an African American four-star General who’s now the US Secretary of Defence. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, one other African America,n is the US Ambassador to the United Nations.
Adebayo Ogunlesi, an African, is chairman and major shareholder of the corporate that owns Gatwick airport and was a lecturer at Harvard and Yale universities, Indra Nooyi, an East Indian was chairman of Pepsi from 2007 to 2019. She was a graduate of Madras University and Yale.
Sadiq Khan, of East Indian ancestry, is Mayor of London.
None of those people of minority races are there due to their race.
They’ve earned their places within the Sun. While some will little question point to their race with some levels of pride, the actual pride ought to be within the determination for achievement and endeavours of those notable people.
The world is moving on, placing the very best from amongst us to positions of power and abandoning the ugly history of racial divisiveness.
In TT, we must learn from international best practices.
In every developed country worldwide, it’s commonplace for societies to run themselves through structures of strong community-based management.
Water is equally distributed, and pressure balanced through gravity. Crime is suppressed through structured police patrols, quick access to justice, alternatives to criminal activities and education. Economic activity is inspired through ease of doing business, modern reliable infrastructure, an informed mass, and political encouragement.
Food security is arrived through incentives to agriculture, access to markets, security and a plan that specifically maps out the crops, processing, and marketing of agricultural products. These goals can only be achieved is we employ the very best from amongst us to get us where we must be.
Education, take care of the elderly and the poor, sports, tourism and so way more must be also managed by our greatest and most competent personnel.
If we proceed to vote for our managers based purely on race, we are going to find yourself with a lecturer in management being a health minister, a construction skilled as minister of finance, and inefficiencies in almost every sector of our society.
If there may be anything to be learnt from the ascension of Rishi Sunak, it ought to be that we must look beyond race and seek competence.
Editor’s Note: Regular Wednesday columnist Dr Gabriella Hosein is on leave. Her column will return soon.
