Rowley: Opposition incites anti-migrant protest

THE Prime Minister on Friday accused the Opposition of inciting citizens against Venezuelan migrants, speaking in the House of Representatives on a bill to exempt such individuals from paying into the National Insurance Scheme (NIS).

Saying TT is making a contribution by helping Venezuelans due to their current circumstances, Rowley said the “conspiracies and devils” seen by Opposition MPs were all merely in their heads.

Saying there is no conspiracy (to supply cheap labour) by blocking Venezuelans from accessing the NIS, he said, “I don’t believe my (Opposition) colleagues really believe what they are saying, but they are saying it to incite the population. Deliberately. Some of them are lawyers and senior counsel, and they are saying it just to incite the population.

“We cannot extricate ourselves from the impact of the Venezuelan situation. But they (Opposition) organised people to come to Parliament to shout ‘Rowley must go.’”

The Opposition denied any links to the protesters outside Parliament on Friday.