Dear Editor,
From all reports, it is quite evident that a Social Security program is one of the best insurance program that a country can ever have for it’s people.
Here in Antigua, the Social Security program is designed to provide an income to the retired employee who have contributed to the state during their employment years. At the same time, the program also assists in providing an income to those persons who are not retired but have been certified by a doctor that they are unfit to work due to sickness, pregnancy, etc.
Interestingly, for sometime now, beneficiaries of the scheme, like my grandmother, are paid late due to the limited cash that is in the Social Security coffers. As a result, this has caused political ramblings between our two main political parties, ABLP & UPP, as to who is the cause of the financial crisis that our Social Security Scheme is presently facing.
Looking into my grandmother’s interest, I will admit, that I have taken part in marches & demonstrations that UPP has organized. Of course, UPP had convinced me that this present administration and its predecessors are the chief culprits responsible for the mismanagement of the Social Security funds thus causing the present financial instability at Social Security.
Amazingly, after listening to the Director of Social Security, who was on Daren Matthew-Ward’s morning show last week, the records concerning Social Security and its funds, in my view, were set straight. It was my understanding that the Director in his wisdom & professionalism, in an under tone, emphatically explained that this present Gaston Browne’s administration should be complimented and given high kudos for the conscious efforts that it is making to correct the financial situation at Social Security. I also understood that so far, from the $550,000,000.00 that has been owed to the scheme, the Gaston Browne’s administration has offset it by almost $350,000,000.00 of which the other administrations under VC Bird, Lester Bird and Baldwin Spencer has made VERY LITTLE effort to assist in offsetting the amount owed.
The Director’s report definitely brought out the CHICKENS to hatch. There was clearly some light on the matter. It seems to me that over the years, UPP has been deceptive & misleading the masses throughout.
Governance is a continuation! The responsibility of converting the wrongs of a previous administration into rights is the role of the governing administration. Did UPP do that during their tenure? The answer is clearly NO!! Perhaps if they did, then Social Security would be in a much better position than where it is today.
Instead, they operated on keeping their monthly statutory payments up to date and conveniently ignored what was owed to the scheme. As a result, Social Security had no chance of recovering because of UPP’s irresponsible behaviour coupled with the impact of the pandemic & the downfall of Allan Stanford’s empire.
To mislead the masses and to have the pensioners getting heat strokes & sunburns from the hot sun as they sport placards demanding answers from both the Director of Social Security & the ruling administration, is a serious indictment on UPP, knowing very well that they are also a contributing factor to the problem at Social Security .
UPP needs to understand that governance is continuous & the country & the people’s business always comes first, rather than ignoring what the previous administration has left behind. Two wrongs cannot make a right! The wrongs from the previous administration, if any, should always be corrected if it benefits the country…. MSJMC is a prime example when they decided to leave the hospital as a white elephant but was forced by ICC to get it up & running because of world cup.
That modus of operandi of deceiving & not touching what the previous administration has left behind is certainly unwarranted for any administration who is vying to manage the country’s affairs. It’s a clear sign of political immaturity & intellectual dunceness!!
Fitzroy
Advertise with the mоѕt vіѕіtеd nеwѕ ѕіtе іn Antigua!
We offer fully customizable and flexible digital marketing packages.
Contact us at [email protected]
ha ha ha Gaston Browne is Fitzroy, Nomad, Youth, True Davis. Gaston who you think you fooling!
TOTAL B_ _S LETTER AGAIN AS USUAL.
YOU AND GASTON BROWNE IF YOU ARE NOT THE SAME THINK THAT PENSIONERS AND VOTERS FOOLY.
OBVIOUSLY ALL BLAME SHOULD BE PLACED ON UPP.
USEFUL IDIOT
UPP IS JUST NOT READY!! THEY ALWAYS PUT ANGER, LIES, HATE, VENGEANCE & POLITICAL MOTIVES INFRONT OF NATIONAL INTEREST… UPP IS JUST NOT READY TO GOVERN…
You’re a BLUDDY JOKE
SO PARTISAN.
ANYTHING APART FROM ABLP IS MORE READY.
THEY DESTROYING ANTIGUA.
THEY CANT EVEN PAY THEIR BILLS.
PEOPLE SO HUNGRY.
ITS TIME FOR ABLP TO GO. CALL THE ELECTION
Just another campaign letter trying to bewilder the people.
Who is responsible for putting measures in place like CIP(UPP) that this administration make more money than the previous administration, but people are suffering?
Who is responsible for destroying the youths causing most of the youths smoking? Decriminalising but not educating the youths them in marijuana because they want votes? This administration
Who likes to burrow but don’t likes to pay? This administration
Who is the reason for disgruntled staff protesting because they cannot access their overtime for years? ABLP
FITZROY even if UPP is a culprit in the ongoing Social Security saga, there is a no bigger culprit than the ALP in there 28 before UPP, the Lester Bird years and now the Gaston Browne years.
Without a shadow of a doubt, this is another letter designed to brainwash the “generational” ABLP base and to try and make the undecided voter lean towards the current government.
What is so fascinating to witness with these types of divisive correspondence, is that the writer believes that the readers cannot fathom or recognise what the SCRIVENER is really up to.
Surely it would have been much better to publish a more balanced piece, that could have shown the warts and all of both parties!
I still note that the ratio of these type of editorial letters are still unhealthily in favour of the ABLP.
For a healthy Antiguan DEMOCRACY to thrive, not only is this unbalance not fair, but also with an election imminent the ratio must now be seen as a 50/50 split.
I BELIEVE THAT THE “ABLP” AUTHOR OF THIS LETTER KNOWS THE DATE OF THE COMING ELECTION, AND IS MAKING SURE THAT SOME OF THE MUD-SLINGING STICKS BEFORE VOTING COMMENCES …
Yo FITZY, are you still sitting on the fence?
Me can’t even continue to read this hog wash as if my memory serves me right there was an increase in the payment and will be another and last time i check a the ALP government didn’t pay into the scheme while taking out monies. Wheel and come again.
One needs only think back to labor day (his statement was quoted by Daily Observer), where the representative (Sir Keithlyn Smith ) for the union (author of To shoot hard labor) pointed out that UPP had not been paying for years. He stated Cort made one initial payment, after which there had been no payment for years
YOU ARE SUCH A LIAR………Y DO U LIE SO MUCH.
ANYTHING TO DECEIVE PEOPLE.
E NAR GA WORK NO MO. PLEASE JUST GO
How UPP responsible when in 2004 when UPP came in they paid up the monies that ALP failed to pay. How now you all going to try blame UPP. Stop with you all political brain wash. Fed up you ABLP people. Stop playing politics and blaming people. Run the country.
ABLP needs to employ a better strategy than deception and trying to tarnish people’s reputation. Citizens will respect the party more if MPs and especiallyGB would admit they have messed up, have no plan and are unfit to govern.
Call the election and now out gracefully! The lies and smear campaign are getting stale.
Fitzroy, it is quite clear that you have not heard the utterances of the Chief of Staff. He plainly said that ALP government met loads of monies for Social Security in all the banks. They got 2 and 3 percent interest. Some monies were places into CD’s. Chief of Staff admitted that ALP Government borrowed the monies AND DID NOT PAY BACK. If you don’t believe me, go ask Chief of Staff; maybe he will swear to all God he did not say such a thing.
Comments are closed.