No CBI says ULP, NDP has a different view

Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves has once again stressed that he does not think a Citizenship by Investment (CBI) programme is in the best interest of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG).

And, he has vowed to stay away from that type of moneymaking venture.

His comments about the CBI comes in the wake of recent statements by Leader of the Opposition, Dr. Godwin Friday that there is a cost-of-living crisis in the country and a government under his control would use income from a CBI programme to fill some of the economic holes that exist.

Friday spoke of several initiatives during his party’s convention in Petit Bordel on Sunday, October 13, 2024, that he said were financial positives. Among them are a reduction in the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 16 per cent to 13 per cent, a review in customs duties and the port charges, and the granting of year-end bonuses to public servants using funds from a CBI programme.

“It is not rocket-science, don’t tell me we can’t do it because they doing it St. Kitts, they doing it in Dominica, and the reason they can do it is because they have a citizenship by investment program that pays for it,” Friday had pointed out in relation to year end bonuses.

He said a CBI programme in SVG under a New Democratic Party (NDP) administration will be properly monitored and the money will go into the pockets of the citizens.

However, during his Independence Day message on October 27, Prime Minister Gonsalves said while St Vincent and the Grenadines welcomes foreign investment, the government does not do so at the expense of the people’s interests.

“We, today, must ensure always a staunch defense and promotion of our nation’s sovereignty and independence within the context of our quest to advance further our interests through the deepening of regional integration, and internationalist solidarity by way of our bilateral and multilateral undertakings.

“You can always rely on this Prime Minister, this government, never to permit the subversion of our sovereignty and independence or to sell our patrimony, inclusive of our treasured citizenship and passports. We are not for sale,” Gonsalves stressed.

The Unity Labour Party (ULP) administration has long made public that a CBI programme, in their thinking, is a lazy, unimaginative and baseless mantra masquerading as a plan.