Basseterre, St.Kitts (PAM Communications Unit):-People’s Action Movement representative for Central Basseterre Mr. Jonel Powell has declared that he makes no apology for stating that “our people must always be considered first when it comes to investment incentives and employment in our Country”. Responding to an emailer on “Issues” a programme hosted by Juni Liburd on Freedom FM. Powell stated that foreign workers should only be considered for jobs after our local people have been given the opportunity to fill the positions. “Our people must be considered first in any job position whether it is skilled or un-skilled jobs” he said.
The PAM Co-Deputy Political Leader Powell went on to highlight his concern regarding the lack of local employees in foreign owned establishments such as Chinese owned supermarkets. Powell said “I have no problem with Chinese owned supermarkets if they come in to provide a service and employment to our people. But I do have a problem when I see Chinese workers even packing shelves!” I can find at least a hundred people who would be happy to do that job.” He went on to explain that, “in these hard economic times, any job is better than no job in order to get money to pay bills and to feed one’s family”. He also claimed that with over 1200 hundred young people in the PEP programme, “no foreign owned company can, in my view, justify employment of un-skilled foreign workers, not with so many of our own people looking work!”
“A definitive policy must be put in place that requires the majority of workers from unskilled to professional levels in any foreign owned business to be locals”.
He went on to explain that neither he nor his PAM party had any objections to foreign Investors once they were coming to invest their own money and to create jobs for the locals ,but not utilizing monies that belong to our people from the sale of economic citizenships, monies from S.I.D.F.
“Our monies are being used to prop up foreign investors rather than to encourage and assist our own local investors and hard working business people. That cannot be good for our Country” said Powell
“Our Local Investors and Workers must be given first consideration, our people, like our Country must come first”! He concluded passionately.