Dear Editor,
It is a fact that significant damage was done to GuySuCo in the period 2015-2020. The performance data is there to confirm or dispute this claim. In the said period, I shared several commentary pieces and analyses of GuySuCo’s performance and strategic positions. With a change in Government in 2020, renewed political will and new management, there was an abundance of enthusiasm, optimism, and energy in the sugar belt. This led to a legitimate expectation for this new team to focus on stopping the decline in the industry as a first step, and to formulate a practical & realistic roadmap to reposition itself.
Sadly, after two years of Government’s unequivocal financial support to new management, we are nowhere close to realising those expectations. In fact, the industry is in a worst state than it had been in 2020.
There is documented evidence that, over the last two years, the Corporation spent an inordinate amount of time and energy to showcase itself on social and mainstream mediums, more than any other management group had done, and in any period in GuySuCo’s history. It appears that the intent was to direct the minds of citizens into believing that this new management team is very active, efficient, innovative, and is delivering results.
In reality, there is a big disconnect between performance and media narrative. Editor, the Corporation will provide, and continues to provide, all sorts of justification and explanation for its mediocre performance, such as rainfall disaster, inability to till and plant, labour shortage, union non-support, sugar hoarding, smuggling, etc. However, it is my considered view that poor decision-making is the major contributor to its performance.
Recently, the Corporation presented data to justify impact of rainfall on sugar output, and quoted literature in an attempt to explain cause of low production. In its analysis, the Corporation omitted the fact that, in 2008, when rainfall was 3002.1mm (highest in recent times), Albion, Blairmont & Uitvlugt Estates produced 55,454 tonnes, 32,410 tonnes and 15,760 tonnes sugar respectively. This means that these 3 GuySuCo estates produced 103,624 tonnes sugar in a year that recorded the highest rainfall in recent times. Given this fact, I challenge GuySuCo to share with this nation the projected sugar production for 2022.
In comparing output for high rainfall years, I am challenging the Corporation once more to provide data on the 3 operating estates for years 2008, 2021 and 2022 for the following key performance indicators: rainfall, tonnes cane per hectare, sucose % cane, tonnes cane per tonne sugar, average grinding hours per week, cane production cost per pound, sugar production cost per pound, and total tonnes of bagged and packaged sugar produced.
The sugar shortage is a self-inflicted problem caused by the Uitvlugt mill gear fiasco. Again, if GuySuCo’s in-house experts had made the right decisions in December 2021, when the problem was first observed, Uitvlugt would have operated for more time in its first crop, making more sugar available in 50kg format for local consumption.
Unfortunately, performance of the Corporation is such a national embarrassment at this time that a leading Opposition MP was forced to issue a call for his former party member and comrade to resign or be fired from GuySuCo. It cannot get worse. However, let us continue to discourse with a view to helping the industry.
Yours faithfully,
Sookram Persaud