The bourgeois electoral circus proved to serve the interests of Wall Street and the election of its candidate, Ricardo Roselló. He travelled to New York to meet with the imperialist henchmen in order to “recover investor confidence.” Recently, Roselló proposed loans up to $2 billion for January of 2017. Jennifer González also met with various members of the Junta, including its chairman, José Carrión III. Proposals from Roselló and his government such as a “single employer” without laying off public sector employees lead us to ask, “How can this be done without reducing the payroll or cutting workers?” “What is he referring to when he talks about eliminating ‘unnecessary’ costs?”
The colonial administration will continue with Wall Street’s plans to reduce government through layoffs and appropriate what is left of public pension systems. All of this will go hand and hand with the Wall Street Junta and the reorganization of the debt machine. The contradiction is such that while Roselló anticipates paying bondholders $1.3 billion in January of 2017, he also says that he will work for a “Better Puerto Rico.” The working class does not buy it. One cannot be an oppressor and work for the people.
The Wall Street Junta openly announces austerity and more precariousness for the working class. It will work on the supposed deficit and make good on the next debt payment of $1.3 billion in January of 2017. Let us not forget the $2 million of our money deposited monthly for its functioning; a sum of $24 million annually (Art. 107, Promesa Law).
Among so many millions we see the bondholders and bourgeois talking about money as if it was just a stroll in the park, as if it just sprung from the roots of a plantain plant. While they enjoy millions in their accounts – so many million dollar transfers with just one click – they working class has to increasingly struggle to cover basic necessities between paltry wages and unemployment. All of those transferred millions come from our work, from our pensions, from taxes like the SUT, from the money paid every April each year when we submit tax forms and we pay the Wall Street bagmen.
The State, as a necessary condition for capitalism, has an entity charged with collecting taxes and fees from its “citizens”, that is to say, from the majority working class. In the case of the territory, it is called “Treasury, here to serve you”, the Department of Treasury of Puerto Rico.
From July to October 2016, Treasury collected $824.8 million from the SUT as well as $569.3 million from individual tax receipts. In total, net revenue to the General Fund was $3 billion during this period. What a nice fillet for the bondholders and their Junta! How easy is it for the Wall Street parasites to talk about millions of dollars!
The pillage carried out by Wall Street through its Junta will affect the whole working class and other sectors of small property owners. The moment will come when the working class will find itself in the situation where it either pays Treasury in the service of Wall Street or it covers its most pressing necessities.
Without the money paid every April and from the SUT, the Junta and bondholders can no longer keep up financial speculation or robbing our money. To defend our pensions and combat massive layoffs of public sector employees, we must organize and concentrate workers’ power.
All of this oppression must be combated with organization in each workplace as well as in our communities through the development of workers’ councils. Workers consciousness against the Wall Street Junta! Workers Councils and Assemblies! Let us build workers’ power!