St. George’s, Grenada December 6th, 2011: Leader of Her Majesty’s Opposition, Dr. the Rt. Honourable Keith Mitchell is calling on the Tillman Thomas Administration to urgently address the glaring weaknesses in the current Debushing Programme, especially the high level of victimization which now exists.

 

According to Dr. Mitchell, too many poor and vulnerable people who are depending on the programme to provide for their families, are being denied the opportunity to work because of the high level of political interference and partisanship in the day to day administration of the programme. 

He said apart from the high level of victimization, the Government has reduced the number of contractors and workers in the programme by more than 50%.  At the same time, those who receive a fortnight work are forced to work longer hours in the hot sun for less pay ($100.00 less per fortnight).

Commenting on the new arrangements introduced by the NDC, Dr. Mitchell said the programme in the past gave an opportunity for persons to complete their task and move on to do other things to have an additional income. 

Dr. Mitchell has called for an end to the use of the programme to reward some and spite others saying every Grenadian has a right to work and therefore must not be denied the opportunity to make an honest living while contributing to the development of their country.