MSJ presses for recovery plan

THE Movement for Social Justice (MSJ) is calling upon Government to say more about how it plans to stimulate the economy during and after the covid19 pandemic. MSJ leader David Abdulah made the call during a virtual news conference on Monday.

While the MSJ is not unhappy with the economic measures announced so far by Government to help people affected by the pandemic, Abdulah said these measures seem to be more of a social safety net rather than some kind of economic stimulus.

He accepted that while Government may be constrained by its fiscal position in moving ahead with these or other measures, the stimulus aspect is something which must feature in the covid19 conversation. Abdulah reiterated that this is why the MSJ has been advocating a national recovery plan for TT.

He said aspects of this plan include major investments in agriculture and manufacturing, to boost the economy, create and save jobs. Abdulah also said this plan would also use excess liquidity in the commercial banking system to stimulate the economy.

Referring to the salary relief grant initiative launched by Government, Abdulah said this was a good first step. But he added the next steps should be to find ways to register people and businesses who are currently not registered with the National Insurance Board.

Abdulah said it remains to be seen coming out of the pandemic, if some businesses will maintain the virtual technological aspect of their operations or there could be a greater focus on things like short-term contract employment.

Abdulah was also concerned that nothing has been mentioned about pandemic leave since Labour Minister Baptiste-Primus first spoke about it last month. On April 3, Baptiste-Primus said no decision has been taken on pandemic leave and it is still before Cabinet's finance and general purposes committee.

Abdulah was pleased that several groups are embracing ideas expressed by the MSJ to address social and economic concerns during the pandemic. Abdulah was heartened by the emergency Caricom Heads of Government Meeting in Barbados on Wednesday to discuss covid19 and its impact on the region. He said the MSJ has long advocated a regional, coordinated approach to tackling the pandemic.