DJ Ram - Part 2

Comparing the recession in the 1980s with the current recession:

“In the first recession (1980s) I wasn’t a shop owner but now as a shop owner I feel differently about the current recession. Life went full circle for me. When I first came to Ireland there was no ‘Tiger’ economy. The country was moving forward, one step at a time. A lot of people I knew in Ireland, back then had to emigrate as there were no options left to them.

The difference with the current recession is that over the last 20 years so many people made so much money in that time. Despite the recession there are a lot of people who have money. There’s people lost money and a lot that made a fortune from investments. This recession is like the one in the 1980s except this time we have more people here. Four million now, in the 1980s the population was around three million. Many people have returned to the country and there is peace in the north. All these things have made a difference. I mention the north because in the ‘80s we used to up north for bargains and then when the economy improved we started going to New York to do our shopping. But now, things have gone full circle, people are going back again to the north to shop.

This recession is a big lesson to a lot of people that do not deserve to be in business – they are chancers. The country was awash with money. Builders became developers and they hadn’t a clue about being a developer. The banks played a big part in helping those idiots to become developers and that is why we’re in this situation. But the big businesses are the worst hit. The smaller traders are less badly affected as they have been much more careful in their investments.

Four or five years ago, when I was trying to find a location for my shop, it was impossible but the location doesn’t matter anymore. It is the rent that has made it difficult for everybody. The rent ten years ago is not like the rent today. It has to go up every couple of years after a review. So if you were making money you could afford the rent. The rents are still the same but there’s less money around. Ten years ago I used to tell my friends and customers: ‘yeah ten years from now my shop will be as big as Tower Records.’ I am glad it didn’t go like that or I’d be closed now.”


My take on Immigrants:

“There will always be immigrants, whether it’s going abroad or other people coming here. It depends on the economy or the laws in a country. If people knew that Ireland was a fortress, nobody would bother coming here. But because people know that in Ireland’s history there was some hardship, immigrants will get a sympathetic hearing.

Ireland’s economy was going really well and this is part of the reason for immigrants coming here. Because people will go to a country where there is money around. But these people should get the protection they need when they come here. Wherever people go they should get protection. But immigration becomes a problem when you see women trafficked. No African guy is going to load a bus with African women and then land in Ireland. There are gangsters here that are doing this business: organised child trafficking. So immigration is happening here, it just needs too be dealt with properly.

It is now much harder for people to come here compared with ten years ago, seven years ago or even five years ago. The rules are now tougher and that’s part of the reason. Coming from Libya, as people would know, has got harder and the government there have to bargain with the European authorities. They won’t allow refugees unless they get what they want from Libya. So now Europe has a deal stopping people departing from Libya. Most European countries now have tightened their borders and it means if people travel to France it is impossible to go any further.

It is sad to see people being exploited by smugglers, some are Libyans or from other African countries. What immigrants need is a Passport, the key to a better life. I think that refugees are deliberately mistreated. An African person, for example, could work for you for nothing. It is easier for an employer to get someone to work for nothing rather than go and get their employee a Visa and organise things legitimately for them. But with no documentation this allows the boss to avoid paying someone who is undocumented.

One of the reasons why immigration to Europe has gone down is because of the recession. There’s no money and there’ll be more genuine applications here from people abroad as the ‘Celtic Tiger’ has disappeared. I am now an Irish citizen. After living here for 23 years I got my Passport. Some have come here from abroad and got their Passport after three or four years.”

Next week in the final installment of my interview with DJ Ram: 'If I was Taoiseach' where our hero brings us up to date as he is given the honour of being Ireland's first black leader!!