The government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines picked up the tab for the rally on Saturday to mark the first anniversary of the opening of Argyle International Airport.
Opposition Leader Godwin Friday had asked on Friday about how the rally was going to be financed.
Speaking at the rally, Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves said:
“I heard that he say he doesn’t know who is paying for this. This is a government function. This is a government function. This is the Argyle International Airport.”
The prime minister said that individual persons paid in the communities for buses to transport people to the rally.
“Government ain’t pay for no bus. But, of course, that’s why yo’ see I come in a green pants and a blue shirt and I put on — the youth them tell me I must put on a hat tonight. But, I tell you this, that don’t mean ah cyar do that you know,” Gonsalves said, and raised his right hand.
On his wrist, the prime minister was wearing two wooden bracelets, which he said he got from the Vatican in 2013 and a red one, which he said, “is to keep the company tonight”.
Red is also the colour of the ruling Unity Labour Party.
Speaking at the press conference on Friday, the opposition leader noted that when the airport opened last year, the government arranged chartered flights from Canada and New York and Head of the Tourism Authority, Glen Beache had expressed confidence that the flights would have sold out within an hour of tickets going on sale.
“As we found out, taxpayers paid over EC$700,000 for that exercise in publicity for the ULP government,” Friday said.
“That’s basically what it was. So the question that I’m asking today, ‘Are taxpayers going to be made to pay the bill for this extravaganza that they are planning out at Argyle tomorrow?’
“That is a relevant question given the fact that for the third straight year in a row VAT has been increased on the people in St. Vincent and the Grenadines; more taxes have been imposed, given the fact that we have serious hardships in the economy of this country.
“We need to know, to ensure that government’s money is not wasted on a bashment that is basically just a political advertisement for the Unity Labour Party and part of their campaigning,” he said.
Tomorrow, most of them there can,t even buy food to eat. They will be asking to lend them money, give them some rice, cooking oil, or something for them to eat. Poor fools, THE POOR and INDIGENTS. Keep them like that.
It seems that the celebration was in fact a political rally, (no NDP Politicians were invited). That seems to mean that the government is now having NDP supporters, against their will, funding ULP Political Rallies.
Lostpet you are absolutely right in you observations, this was a ULP political rally paid for with money stolen from the states coffers.
There is no benefit to the general citizens in holding this rally, it does nothing for tourism, it only helps DREGs and the ULP, so they should have paid for it.
So if it was a ULP political rally you have a problem with that you really out of substance so he should of invite the NDP the rally was for every and anybody the NDP don’t have no love for the AIA and so bad mind ah kill them ,
The AIA is there and it is not going no where .
All the ULP have to give the ndp is LOVE, LOVE,LOVE & more LOVE.
So if they can’t buy food tomorrow they ain’t coming by you please
You out of substance go so Faith .
Why they turn the anniversary of AIA into a political REALLY? Someone losing their head. Need to be institutionalised?