Opposition leader Allen Chastanet has renewed his criticism of the government over high fuel and food prices, asserting that the cost of living belies the ruling Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) claim of being concerned about people.
Addressing a news conference Tuesday, the United Workers Party (UWP) leader stated that bus fares went up due to the cost of fuel.
Chastanet also told reporters that disposable household income has diminished because people are paying almost twice as much for cooking gas.
And he called on the government to cushion the impact of inflation on the people.
" But the damage has already been done. Do any of us expect bus fares to go back down? Any of us expect bread prices to go back down? So we've built inflation now into our system," Chastanet declared.
"The workers of this country are demanding higher wages to compensate. And when those wages go up, do we believe that those wages are going to come back down? No," he told the news conference.
He said if people were not upset enough, the budget revealed a hike in consultancy fees.
Chastanet pointed to the number of media personnel hired as consultants in the Prime Minister's office and other departments.
"How many of them? How does that calculate into the statements that things are so bad, but you are hiring these people?" He stated.
In addition, the opposition leader observed that there had been a hike in entertainment allocations.
As a result, he questioned whether the government was making the necessary sacrifices.
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