Cushioning the Most Vulnerable

Prime Minister Stephenson King couched his words when he addressed the nation earlier this year. Although he did not say that economically things will be rough so St. Lucians will have to tighten their belts, the message was there.
What was not there however was the message of immediate hope, hope that in this environment of rising prices Government would put certain measures in place to immediately cushion the impact such a situation would have on the unemployed, the poor, the low income earners, those who depend on relatives to survive, in fact the most vulnerable amongst us.
It has been generally accepted that the current climate would lend itself to difficult times ahead, after all oil prices on the world market, though not as high today compared with the beginning of the year, are still high enough to impact on almost everything imported into St. Lucia, and even on things produced locally.
For instance bread is produced locally but the argument presented by bakers is that the components, such as gas, needed to produce the bread has risen in price making it costlier for them to produce this stable in our diet.
Therefore it was understandable to hear the Prime Minister say that his administration is prepared to take some hard decisions and do what is in the best interest of the country and not in the interest of political expediency.
And St. Lucians we believe, understand the current economic climate and its ramifications on prices they at one time took for granted. However, this does not mean that Government is helpless and that all decisions taken by Government should be unpopular.
While the increase in gas at the pumps is an unpopular one it is so because of the amount by which it was increased. St. Lucians expected an increase in their fuel bill, however not by such a high amount. Reason for the high increase, as explained by Prime Minister King, was that Government could no longer subsidize fuel, something they have been doing to the tune of 19 plus million dollars.

Taking in consideration the absence of a safety net to cushion the impact current prices at the pumps will have on the most vulnerable amongst us Government could have at least continued the subsidy, albeit, at a smaller amount. The same goes for cooking gas.
The $19 million paid in subsidy could have been lowered to $10 million, which could have been maintained for another year or so while Government monitors the situation on the world market.
While we understand that hard decisions must be made in this worldwide scary economic climate, such decisions must not be made at the expense of the masses or else the backlash from the people could be more than Government can cope with. The phrase, a hungry man is an angry man … comes to mind.
The decisions made today by Government could very well turn out to be the right ones in the long term, however Government should also bear in mind the short term consequences its actions could have on its people, consequences that could impact negatively on decisions that are intended for the overall good in the distant future.
What with the introduction of a value added tax (VAT) soon to hit St. Lucians where it hurts most, their wallets, despite Government’s announcement that this will ensure they have a stable base of revenue that can be used to meet the cost of providing services, building economic infrastructure and improving social and community amenities, a safety net to pillow or smooth some of the rough edges of economic hardship some people will have is of a necessity. This is something Government should not ignore.