Back in 1982, just shy of 40 years ago, Dr Carl Parris, a well-known and highly respected member of the faculty of government at UWI, did an analysis of those people who were regarded as being in power in Trinidad and Tobago, whom he defined as those who made decisions that affected the national economy on behalf of the nation. He narrowed in on those in control of government and state enterprises, as those were the focus of his research at the time. And the perceived seat of power.

Dr Parris's work came to mind recently when I read an article by Curtis Williams, one of our most articulate economic researchers, of yet another debacle perpetrated in the state-controlled energy sector, where the real power lies. This time, it was through a $250-million loss due to poor judgement by the board of directors at NGC led by Conrad Enill.

At the same time I came across a notification of Business Women's Day, which will be celebrated on September 20 this year (in case anyone is interested). It did not exist in 1982.

Of course, no one takes responsibility for poor corporate judgement or poor governance in state enterprises. The boards of directors tell people looking for answers to ask the minister, and the ministers tell them to ask the chairs of the boards, forgetting to mention that it is the politicians that chose the chairs. And in the end, it is always Cabinet, now mainly the Prime Minister, that makes the decisions. He can and does override board decisions using his own power and wisdom. That is not a power given to him in the Constitution, but accorded to him by the consent of his colleagues.

Back in 1982, according to Dr Parris, there was a workforce of 483,000 people out of a population of 1,120,000, with only 300 people who sat as directors on state-owned boards, which he calculated to be .06 per cent of the workforce or .025 per cent of the population.

Those who were enjoying the perquisites of power that came with making the decisions to determine the economic and social well-being of the people of TT he defined as those who sat on three or more boards, who numbered 23. That is in the public sector alone, the focus of his study.

So I sat and I pondered. What have we learned in the passage of almost 40 years, and how have things changed?

There has been progress in many fields. Women in business, for example. In 1982 there were no women recorded as being on three or more state boards. Now there are two. Which is a 200 per cent increase.

In 1982 there were 23 men on three or more state boards; now there are four, which is a decrease of 525 per cent.

Interesting statistic, which reflect the 80 per cent female-to-male ratio of university graduates in certain disciplines. See the number of female accountants (ten) and lawyers (13) who are directors in their own right on state boards. And of the 37 state corporations listed, 27 have female corporate secretaries, the qualifications for that position usually requiring legal certification. Six women directors now even chair their boards and six are ch