Come clean on centre

THE EDITOR: A perusal of the Draft Estimates for the Development Programme 2026 reveals a deeply concerning policy shift. Under the Infrastructural Development Fund, the project for the Construction of a Socially Displaced Assessment Centre has been shockingly defunded, moving from an allocation of $15 million last year to $0.00.

This is not just a line item; it is the abandonment of a vital $50 million facility that was promised to provide a new lease on life for our most vulnerable. This centre, designed to house at least 200 homeless individuals and provide them with healthcare, job training, and other critical services, now has an uncertain future.

I implore the Minister of People, Social Development and Family Services to come clean on the future of this project. Is this the new government's policy direction – to not prioritise the socially displaced?

The former administration highlighted that homelessness has increased by 13.4 per cent since 2011, with hundreds of citizens living on the streets. To completely "zero out" the funding for a solution to this growing crisis signals a profound neglect of civic duty and social justice.

The public deserves an explanation.

RICHARD RAMCHARITAR

Penal