Perspective: Finance Minister A. Shaw Calls Dr. Phillips A “Hypocrite” …

   “Them Lie, Lie, Lie …”

A parliamentary show down played out itself in the House today as Shaw closed the debate in the 2018/19 Budget Debate held today March 21, 2018.

Accusations of lies echoed through the Chambers of parliament directed at the PNP Opposition by Shaw.”The JLP did not leave a “bankrupt and ruined” economy in 2011 when it last left office.  That is a lie.

Shaw accused his colleague parliamentarians, especially the Opposition Leader Dr. Peter Phillips of being a “Hypocrite” and also “bad minded.”  This caused quite an uproar in the House.  Speaker had quite a task to keep order. He said teachers and nurses accepted the 5 percent retroactive payment of salaries from April 2017. To much applause.

Bad Minded

They will still be negotiating to settle other outstanding claims. Shaw gave the police a deadline of tomorrow March 22, 2018 to accept retroactive salary payment.

Parliamentarians got theirs already. “Them bad minded and hypocritical that is why them no want the teachers and nurses to get their money. This comment caused a great uproar.

Dr. Phillips was visibly upset if not embarrassed. At one point he rose to his feet and protested.

Suicide

The 2018/19 budget of approximately 774 billion Jamaican dollars was approved without any abstentions.  Shaw said the PNP ruined the economy in the 90s and even caused persons to commit suicide. Interest rates were in excess of 15 percent. Now it is averaging 8 percent. International borrowing is at all time low of 5 percent and NIR 4 billion dollars.  (NIR is Net International Reserves). It was around 2 billion dollars under the PNP.

We will give you further details as Hon. Audley Shaw rebutted all the false accusations leveled at the Holness led JLP government by Mark Golding, Opposition Finance spokesman, and Dr. Peter Philips, Opposition Leader, PNP.

Commentary

It was quite a showdown and made for great theatre.  But lies have to be refuted, eh!

Hopeton O’Connor-Dennie is Senior International Correspondent & Photojournalist for Vision Newspaper Canada.