Malone blasts Penn’s ‘negativity’ on govt’s fishing, farmer grants
Health Minister Carvin Malone has urged Opposition Leader Marlon Penn to stop condemning the government’s fishing and farmer grants, particularly since he helped persons to access it.
“I want to invite the Leader of the Opposition to stop it. Stop this concept that the fishing and farmer grants were given out to nobody who deserved it,” Malone said on the VIP Let’s Talk radio programme recently.
“The very [House of Assembly] member brought members into the Premier to be granted with fisher and farmer [assistance grants],” Malone added.
The Health Minister insisted that he knows for a fact that Penn, the Eighth District Representative, brought a number of individuals in to receive assistance grants.
“So, is he saying that the people that he brought in were people not deserving of the fishing and farmer grants?” Malone asked.
No friends and family grant
The Health Minister said the scenario was akin to a former governor and a minister in the United Kingdom (UK) government who said that a $40 million grant taken by the Virgin Islands Party (VIP) government from the Social Security Board was given to their friends and family.
“My family and friends are asking well, ‘where is mine?’” Malone said. “There is nothing there because it went to the places it had [to go]”
But, even as he conceded that there may have been persons who benefited from the grants that shouldn’t have, Malone insisted that the Opposition Leader’s negative messaging needed to stop.
“Were there one or two persons? Maybe, yes. But at the end of the day, this constant messaging, he has to stop it,” the Health Minister said.
Gov’t needs targeted approach to food security
Just recently on the NDP radio show, Penn said the government needed to be more targeted in its measures at ensuring food security for the territory.
As a means to this, he said the government needs to determine current consumption rates in terms of food and the types of food that are being used by residents.
“Are we producing at the rates that we need to be producing at to meet just the bare minimum in terms of our consumption rates? These are the basic things we need to know first off the bat,” Penn argued.
“If we’re not, then we need to have, from a scientific point of view, [a way to] figure out where we need to be, where the money needs to be targeted,” he added.
Penn continued: “… Not take $6 million in stimulus and claim that you are going to develop fishing and farming and just give it away without a clear strategy or a clear plan in terms of how you’re going to grow the industry and develop which sectors of the industry you’re going to develop.”
More than $6 million was reportedly distributed by the government in fishing and farmer assistance grants in 2020 to help cushion the effects of the global pandemic.
However, a leaked list that purportedly showed the names and amounts received by those recipients was met with significant backlash by the public, particularly since many of those persons were deemed to be neither farmers nor fishers.
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its about time someone hot smurf a lick..keep the DNA kit on him he is weak and can only repeat the script given t him by you know who!
Old devil and cockroach looking power
That this was a ‘smart’ way of giving friends and family some cash out of the government treasury. Not so smart after all once the list was published and it showed that these were not farmer and fisher folk at all!
He will blast it because his family has lived a good life from the support of Lavity and the VIP. Up to now he cannot get the nipple out of his mouth. Look at all those contracts he had to bring to the HOA for exemption. We only remember Sheep but Carvin had to bring at least 9 contracts for exemption.
Oh that’s why he so plump…too much t!tty sucking
Remember Admiralty Estate and all the other preferential treatment received. Of course, you would have no problem with the stimulus handouts to people who didn’t deserve it.
Mr. Minister we can see you are trying your best to put out sound bites to get on the news, you are not relevant.
We are not keeping you around any longer. You and DE Castro are the first in line to go.
Listen to a man whose navel string is attached to the treasury for years
Carvin Malone?????????????
That’s why I hate politics. Everybody fake. I celebrated when Mitch and Marlon won because I know these guys character and swore they would be the change we need. I thought finally, we have people from the ground who weren’t politicians, that quickly changed when I realized they were just yes men who co-signed everything that their boss pushed at them. Mitch did stand up at the very last minute but these guys turned out to be a huge disappointment. Same thing with Sowande, I can’t act like the pandemic wasn’t a challenge but the school should have been a priority especially how we saw NDP was slow to fix it. These guys switch up and became typical politicians.
IT is not one or two. A large percentage of those people did not need it or deserved it.
criticism of a poorly executed initiative is not negativity.
We keep blaming government but take a good look at yourselves and your neighbors. I’ve seen y’all in action during the lockdown taking those free unnecessary bags of groceries while still receiving salaries or had enough money to pay for your own. I can never blame government for that because it takes 2 to tango. Some even begged me to request the groceries because it’s free. The same way y’all cheated and begged for those groceries when not in need is the same greed and worthlessness that allowed non fishermen and farmers to take a check when they knew they didn’t need. Shame on all the leeches and parasites.
you mean shame on the government for either intentionally or not intentionally allowing its efforts to be abused.
Lame excuse for the parasites. Nobody can cash a Cheque that they don’t want! Government didn’t drive anyone to the bank. Ayo greedy, worthless ms are the real problem. I watch my coworkers online on live government broadcast asking for freebies in comment when every 2 weeks we got a check to work from home. Neighbors encouraged me to take the groceries but my mother raised me right. I wasn’t in need so it didn’t bother me at all. I ain’t rich but I never been a parasite or leech.
I’m old and have seen far too much. When woman working in office receives big check from stimulus it mocks us all.
We know for sure according to your physical appearance you can do neither of them much less manage the areas. We can attest that you will fail like in your present occupancy.
Tell this to a fowl and it will peck you . A bunch of liars who are trying a way to get the noose off their necks
The more they open their mouths the tighter they pulled the noose
You mean you want Smurf to stop doing EXACTLY what Fahie was doing 4 years ago? The same strategy that got all of you wastes of time elected? Penn keep doing your job as Opposition! Keep calling them out and challenging them!
Only difference is that Penn is actually telling truths!
Like Jerry Maguire said ‘Show me the Money’. Where is all the food from this?
If farmers and fishermen got the money, we would be seeing it after 8 months…but you gave it to your buddies to get votes.
Let’s have an election! Please!
Like Jerry Maguire said ‘Show me the Money’. Where is all the food from this?
If farmers and fishermen got the money, we would be seeing it after 8 months…but you gave it to your buddies to get votes.
Let’s have an election! Please!