MINISTER OF Youth, Sports and Culture, Olivia 'Babsy' Grange, went on the offensive at Thursday's sitting of Parliament's Standing Finance Committee, accusing the Opposition People's National Party (PNP) of reducing the Social Development Commission (SDC) to an ineffective agency during its 18 years in power.

Quizzed by Opposition MP Dr Maurice Guy about the effectiveness of the SDC, Grange charged that her statement was not political but she was speaking the truth about how the agency was poorly managed by the then PNP government.

"Over the last 18 years, the SDC has been emasculated," Grange said to thunderous applause from government MPs.

She said the administration inherited an agency that was fraught with a number of challenges.

Speaking honestly

"When I speak, I speak honestly and if it means that a previous administration did not do something right or the present administration is not doing something right, nobody needs to be offended, I am not playing politics," she said.

However, she gave a commitment that her ministry would correct the inadequacies of the SDC.

South St Andrew MP Dr Omar Davies took issue with Grange's comment. "Just deal with where we are, this 18 years and all that, you are a minister, these are civil servants, let us deal with it as national business," he said.