While unemployment has risen 10 percentage points since March, government revenue fell 18% in May, compared to 2019 and 3,164 persons have filed for state assistance amidst COVID-19, Deputy Prime Minister Sir Louis Straker says Vincentians “are not suffering that much” because of the pandemic.
The Central Leeward MP made the assertion, on Monday, as he argued in support of the government borrowing EC$53 million to build new parliament and courthouse buildings.
“Build a new parliament! Let’s take pride in where we are meeting. By the time — you’re making it appear that we must either decide on Corona or termites. This building is so termite-ridden,” Sir Louis told the debate.
“How long are we going to sit here? You want another two years, you want another three years and then our people, our people are not suffering that much because of, of Corona, too.
“True we have some unemployment. But this government has several programmes in place that we would be able to help those who are poor, those who are needy, we are helping them; we are spending millions of dollars,” said Sir Louis, who is also Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Sir Louis’ comments came on a day when Minister of Finance Camillo Gonsalves told Parliament that the government has paid EC$1.02 million — or EC$300 million per month each — to a total of 1,496 Vincentians affected by closures in the hospitality sector.
An additional 1,100 Vincentians have received a similar $300 per month via the unemployment benefit offered by the National Insurance Services.
And, 2,437 borrowers have the moratorium on loans totalling $303 million even as 1,520 Central Water and Sewerage Authority customers over the last three months would have been disconnected were it not for a moratorium on their bill payment.
The US$20 million spending for the two new buildings was approved in the budget that lawmakers passed in February, before the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, one month later.
However, Opposition Leader Godwin Friday argued on Monday that the projects should be delayed, lest lawmakers “run the risk of sending out there the perception, now we’re ‘niceing’ up ourselves while people are struggling”.
However, Sir Louis, who returned to politics in 2015, five years after announcing his retirement after representing Central Leeward from 1994 to 2010, argued strongly for the construction of the buildings.
“This building is old and tired,” he said of the 200-year-old building that houses the parliament and the High Court.
“And everybody look forward to the day when we would have our own parliament. Everybody refers to it as ‘we are meeting at the courthouse’. If we keep putting it off and putting it off, next year would come with new challenges and new expenditures.”
Sir Louis also responded to the opposition leader’s suggestion that construction be delayed for a year or two.
“So if we say let’s wait for a year or two, when a year or two comes, who knows you might have a major hurricane that we say no, we have to spend the money to rebuild.”
Construction of the buildings is to be financed by a US$20 million loan from Taiwan for a term of 20 years with three years’ grace and an interest rate of 1.2% plus the six months London Interbank Offered Rate.
Sir Louis said that SVG has been graduated to a middle-income economy and cannot get concessionary financing.
“Here we have a friendly government that would give us concessionary loans of less than 2% that we should grab and move forward and do what we have to do.
“So let us not get by with the idea that we don’t know what we would feed our children with next year. And things are tough now, and this is our priority, just feed the children. We can do two things at one time. We can move forward and build a modern Parliament and I’m sure when members of the Opposition are sitting in it, they might not even think that they voted against the bill,” Sir Louis said.
The government used its majority to approve the borrowing without the support of the opposition.
This Martin Luther King Jr. Wanna be !!!!
The 200-year-old Courthouse is a landmark a monument to be preserved. In 20 years ULP never thought of that? Now, ULP want to buy people’s souls so that alyo could continue to live the jet-set life while the working-class suffering. All of a sudden ULP sharing out money and all kinds of assistance from taxpayers money and pretending that is from ULP estate. more than 1/2 the population has no jobs for years. SVG has to set up a Tribunal fo ULP when this is over. […]
Dis guy us a Mad man
Want to know where the policies of the Gonsalves and their Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sir Louis Straker will take us, then take a look at Venezuela after Chavez, the man who started them on the road to ruin. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfvSfzCo_LU
Want to know what being out of work looks like, then visit the country which was so rich, it had the potential to remain as the richest in South America, that it once was. However, what went wrong? Well the red shirts took over the economy, they borrowed what they could not afford to repay and we say, the rest is now history.
They put corruption and their own political survival above the people’s wealth or basic health. SVG’s vanity projects will eventually take us too into that never-ending debt crisis for future generations to then solve, the same after our own redshirted individuals are long dead and gone. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNDJSp8FCjI
So a new parliment building is more needed than a new Hospital.. ????? How is this????
How can you people see this Government as legitimate? Is it that people are completely backward and stupid? Some people expect you to take blows with your hands behind your backs. Using all kinds of complicated rhetoric on infants. This whole thing is a farce by the semi-literate idiots who are running the government. Having this government is like falling in love with a career whore. It does happen; some men can do it but not this one.
I welcome the plans for a distinguished and stand-alone parliament building, indeed a step in a progressive direction.
But Wow!!!!!
I am very disappointed at your assessment Deputy Comrade.
What is this? How you mean Vincentians “are not suffering that much” because of the pandemic? The fact is many Vincentians are unemployed and need assistance…even before the pandemic. In this pandemic taxi-men were in trouble, the vendors in the fish and vegetable markets, hotel staff, wayside vendors…and that is “too much”.
Many who are on “poor relief” or other relief prefer to work. By the way, l despise that term – purge it from the community psyche. Please stop using this term. l urge you to change this despicable name to Social Assistance, or to a program with a name giving some measure of dignity to the person or family seeking assistance.
It makes me squirm in my skin, Sir. For you to say that Vincentians “are not suffering that much” sounds so detached from your mandate. It makes you sound and seem so exalted in your “great-hall of pride” – looking down on the peasants of the plantation, feeling comfortable that you feed them and that’s good enough. It’s like saying one suit of clothes is good enough, they don’t need a full suitcase, keep them begging for another suit. Oh the sin of political science!
You are in your comfort zone and is indicating that you have no other reason to be bothered because your constituents or citizens are not screaming for help or attention. It demonstrates that you have lost touch. This is the wholesome mode of the ULP now. Labour Love is dead and because the election bell will soon ring, all kinds of smoke screens and “love boxes” and free stoves and fridges will be catapulted all over SVG.
When will Vincentians wake up and stop the big red train? It has gone off-track.
The night is dark and the lights are out. IT IS TIME FOR CHANGE, make that indellible mark that will safeguard your future. Vincy is not just a selected few…but…ALL OH WE!
Sir lewie straker is a man I respect,,but no this is where I think he is selfish,,he totally ignore the struggle of poor vincentions,,when u in a better position of economic whealth u fail to see the needs of the less fortunate, so u slight them,,,how sad and selfish,,,that money can be well spent on supplies for our health care,,more doctors and nurses,,overland , sandybay and owia clenic need attention seriously for years,,,,,,PLEASE!!!!!!