Vincentian Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves described the perception that the recent $2.7M that his government allotted to LIAT fiscal relief was already spent as one \u201ckind of an unfortunate misrepresentation which sometimes passes for analysis.\u201d
\nPM Gonsalves was at the time responding to a question fielded by a viewer on Asbert News Network and ITFX Digital Solutions \u2018On De Spot\u2019 live stream last Sunday.<\/p>\n
The viewer wanted to know, \u201cwhat was the urgency in pumping $2.7M into LIAT at a time when you could not put $1M into the pockets of local minibus? After all LIAT has stopped flying a long time ago but minibus operators are still working at reduced capacity as per your administration.\u201d
\nDr. Gonsalves, who is currently seeking an unprecedented 5th term, told Sunday\u2019s audience, \u201cwe have not spent the $2.7M on LIAT. The point about it is this: LIAT is both necessary and desirable we are one of the shareholders.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf I\u2019m going with a stimulus package and regional air transport is critical to that. Barbados, 2 weeks earlier than when we went with our stimulus package, put in a supplementary estimate 3 million Barbadian dollars to LIAT. Antigua would have an allocation for that.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe haven\u2019t yet decided when LIAT is coming back, we are in conversation with the Caribbean Development Bank, but as a prudent government we had to put some money in the supplementary to be able to put the fund there \u2013 if needs be.\u201d
\nWhile the Prime Minister was hesitant to disclose why none of the allotted monies was meant so far he did remind viewers of his role in advent of duty free concessions awarded to private school bus operators.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe man you\u2019re talking to here is the man who shamed the NDP government into giving minibus operators who transport school children 75 percent duty free concession. What happen is this, the NDP gave concessions to the Parliamentarians and Permanent Secretaries and Heads of Departments at the Grade 13 level; 75 percent duty free on their vehicles,\u201d Dr. Gonsalves said.<\/p>\n
Sometime in 1997 the then Opposition MP took a public stance to forego nearly $40, 000 in savings from the duties levied on his imported Pajero. Gonsalves said, \u201cI said publicly I\u2019m not taking the 7 percent duty free concession \u2026 until the then government gave the duty free concessions to minibus operators who transport school children\u2026. And since then we have extended concessions.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you buy a new 26 seater we will give you 80 percent concessions\u2026 because I am encouraging you to buy a bigger one so you can make more money off of it \u2026. In the case of the minibuses there was never a discussion of giving minibuses a million dollars \u2013 giving minibuses a million dollars to do what?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re giving the minibus [operators] $500 a month for 3 months is the money and then I reduced the price, between April and now, of gasoline and diesel by between $2.30 and $2.50 a gallon. We are the second cheapest after Trinidad always have been in the last 5,7, 8 years.\u201d<\/p>\n
JP.Schwmon.Vincy@Gmail.Com<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Vincentian Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves described the perception that the recent $2.7M that his government allotted to LIAT fiscal relief was already spent as one \u201ckind of an unfortunate misrepresentation which sometimes passes for analysis.\u201d PM Gonsalves was at the time responding to a question fielded by a viewer on Asbert News Network and<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":6997,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11206","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-local-news","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n