Widow of late Prime Minister to get allowance increase

The widow of this country’s first prime minister will get a $1,000 increase to her allowance next year, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves has announced.{{more}}

At the end of the annual conference of the Unity Labour Party (ULP) Women’s Arm last Sunday, Dr Gonsalves said that Lucy Cato will get $3500 a month from January.

Lucy Cato is the widow of Robert Milton Cato, who died on February 10th 1997, after about 40 years in the local political arena, and having the distinction of leading this country to political independence from Britain in 1979.

“She must spend her last days in as reasonable comfort as possible,” Dr Gonsalves said.

“Since we have seen economic growth, since we are nicing up everybody, I have to nice up Lucy, too,” Dr Gonsalves said.

He said that he is preparing for some objections to this move; including, perhaps, the opposition New Democratic Party (NDP).

“The Opposition may oppose it, but I am ready for them, if they do,’ Dr Gonsalves said.

However, Opposition Leader Arnhim Eustace says that Dr Gonsalves is just being politically mischievous if he is trying to suggest that he somehow expects objection from the New Democratic Party (NDP) to the gesture. “The NDP were first to propose that she gets the allowance,” Eustace said, adding that his party backed the instituting of the allowance in Parliament.

“We will not have any objection to it,” Eustace said. (KJ)