Prime Minister Bruce Golding has announced that he was taking a 15 per cent pay cut, in a bid to influence public-sector workers to do the same.

He went on further to call upon all members of Parliament to give up ten per cent of their salary. Many say this was an example of good leadership. I say it was a disingenuous move made to score political points, while ignoring the real economic stimulus needed to help us weather the current economic storm.

If the prime minister were genuine, then he would have made some unpopular call, such as the suspension of free health care and free education. Suspending the two programmes alone would have caused the Government to save more than half of the many billions of dollars going into these programmes. The education subsidy for high-school students last year was over $7 billion. The suspension of this programme would see the Government saving over $4 billion by asking parents to pay half of the school fee, this year.

Not priority

The Government's intention to build a new parliament building and a conference centre must be suspended until it can afford to do so. These are not priority areas at this time.

The Government must pay the civil servants their seven per cent increase and whatever retroactive sum is owed to them. This will give over 100,000 working class Jamaicans more money to spend. This spending power will help to stimulate the economy by allowing businesses to remain open and provide more needed taxes.

I am, etc.,

GARFIELD MCDONALD

mcdonaldgarfield@yahoo.com

St. Catherine