Atherley: Why PMO?

While fully supportive of the allotment of money by Parliament for the Household Survival Programme, Opposition Leader Bishop Joseph Atherley is questioning why the money is being vested in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and not for instance in the Ministry of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs, which already deals with people’s welfare.

Speaking yesterday during the debate on the money resolution to approve $10 million for that initiative, Bishop Atherley strongly believed there are other ministerial portfolios which are more directly responsible for that type of oversight of people’s interests, which could handle it.

“I have no doubt that the Office of the Prime Minister is very taxed at this time, especially when we are facing a national crisis of the proportions that confronts us. I would further wish if you are going to say to me or to Barbados that it is the Office of the Prime Minister that manages the disbursement of these funds, that you would have made some indication as to what are the institutional mechanism specifically within that ministry that would treat to the programme, and how the programme in fact would be implemented and pushed through,” he said.

The Opposition Leader made the point while suggesting that there are some within society that “are very much ready and properly positioned” to help with such a Government sponsored programme, to treat to the new needs, new stresses and new vulnerabilities of people at this time.

“...There are people who are willing to give their hearts and hands to help with this type of work in Barbados at this difficult time and I am simply saying it would have been better if we could have had some indication as to the specific institutional mechanism within the Office of the Prime Minister that would have been responsible for the disbursement of these funds,” he stated.

Bishop Atherley went further, stating that it is also important that the public be told how will the identification of those families which are considered to be “most exposed, most vulnerable, most threatened” will be made. He said there are charitable institutions that help to meet people’s material needs, which know in “fairly intimate terms” which families are suffering and he suggested that they have a role to play.

In response, Minister in the Ministry of Finance, Ryan Straughn said the impact of COVID-19 goes way beyond the traditional welfare approach and the mandate of the Welfare Department.

“Right now as we stand here, as we are here in this country, the Welfare Department and the Ministry of People Empowerment, they still have their core work to do in supporting the clients that they already support and as I indicated there is a second supplementary to deal with that. Now, the coordination of the other pieces of work have started, but there are a whole set of other families outside of what one may regard as traditional welfare clients that are now truly vulnerable because of the very sudden and sharp fallout with respect to COVID-19,” he stated.

With that in mind, Straughn said that the Household Survival Programme is meant to be a temporary initiative to deal specifically with the impact of COVID-19, which is over and above those families that would ordinarily engage the suite of social services available in the country.

“...We want to bring the full power of government, being coordinated from the Prime Minister’s Office such that we can support the work that is already being done, not just within the Ministry of People Empowerment but across the other aspects with respect to government,” he added.

He went on to say that the Household Mitigation Unit that was established at the beginning of the Barbados Economic Recovery and Transformation Programme, would assist in the roll out of that initiative, as will the We Gatherin’ Committee, whose work has been brought to a halt because of the spread of COVID.

“We cannot reasonably expect to add to the burden of the Welfare Department at this particular time given the demands that already exist, however these units will support their work in order to be capable of ensuring that we can respond to people in as short a time as possible,” Straughn stated. (JRT)