DEAR EDITOR – One of the countries’s larding industries, government tax contributor and economy booster was the Russell Islands Plantation Estate Limited (RIPEL).
RIPEL bosses have been trying all their best to negotiate with the government over the years to ensure the resumption and or paying off of RIPEL.
Government’s after governments seem to shrug off this issue.
NCRA under the leadership of Danny Phillip came really close when they reached a deal and were about to pay-off the company in order to revive it.
Danny Phillip had a vision and plans to re-build and revive RIPEL. He knows what the industry is capable of in terms of the economy of the country.
When PM Lilo came into power, he squeezed the deal and threw it in the rubbish bin.
What does this mean? That is not visionary on his part. He simply did not look at the long term impact and future of the country but from jealousy that RIPEL bosses would walk away with millions of dollars from the deal.
We the former RIPEL workers are doing nothing there for so long now and wanted this company revived.
We want a lasting settlement and answer to this problem so that we can have jobs again.
Stop politicizing this issue and deal with it genuinely so that it will generate income for the country and provide jobs for people again.
Please revive RIPEL again is my plea to any new government that comes into power next year. This issue needs to be addressed once and for all for the good of the country and people.
Sepo H. Gua
Russell Islands
