United Workers Party (UWP) candidate for Gros Islet, Marcella Johnson, took aim at the government during an opposition press briefing on Tuesday, calling attention to the rising cost of living and what she described as “oppressive” domestic policies.
Johnson described the economic situation as “unbearable” for the average Saint Lucian. She pointed to high inflation and the cost of fuel, rent, healthcare, food, and transportation as key areas where citizens are struggling.
“The health and security levy, which is indeed a very oppressive tax, and the high fuel prices [have been] imposed on the backs of the people, even at a time when international fuel prices have been reduced to an all-time low,” Johnson said.
She criticised the government’s justification that domestic policies have only partially contributed to inflation, and dismissed recent relief measures for civil servants as insufficient.
“While inflation rose by an overall 12.8 per cent during the last four years, civil servants got an increase of just six per cent, which does not compensate for even half of the inflationary pressures breaking the backs of the people of Saint Lucia,” she said, referencing data from the government’s own Economic and Social Review.
Johnson warned that the situation amounts to an economic crisis. “If the civil servants, who are the best paid, cannot keep up with the suffocating rising cost of living, imagine an ordinary gas attendant or someone earning a minimum monthly wage of $1 100.”
Calling for immediate relief, Johnson challenged the government to come up with a comprehensive plan to address the cost of living in Saint Lucia. She proposed the following policy actions:
- Remove the Health and Security Levy to ease the burden on vulnerable families
- Reduce petroleum gas prices in line with global market conditions
- Lower bus fares by offering rebates to minibus drivers
- Temporarily suspend all taxes on food imports by private individuals
- Increase support to local farmers to boost agricultural production and ensure national food security
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