Simpson Miller

Opposition Leader Portia Simpson Miller yesterday urged the Government to take immediate steps to cushion the effects of rising food prices on the vulnerable in the society.

Painting a picture of severe suffering being experienced by the dispossessed, who were unable to afford basic food items, Simpson Miller said not only the poor were facing a crisis, as middle-income Jamaicans have also been feeling the pinch from ballooning prices.

"Does the Government realise how many people just cannot afford those meals to go with the medication which has been prescribed?" she asked, while making her debut presentation as opposition leader in the Budget Debate.

Unbearable

"Feel the tears of the mother, hear the cries of a hungry child, listen to the plea of the sick lying in his bed right now who is now praying to God, saying 'Lord I cannot bear it anymore, take me home' - no food, no bath, no medication."

According to Simpson Miller, the 20 per cent increase in inflation for the 2007-2008 fiscal year has left a significant dent in the spending power of beneficiaries, under the Programme for Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH), who receive $530 per month.

She said she wanted improved benefits under the programme as well as an expansion of PATH to assist more needy persons.

Simpson Miller also raised concerns about proper nutritional support to infants, saying the Government should provide a subsidy for infant formula.

She proposed that the price of other basic food products, including cornmeal, chicken and sugar, should be reduced under a special programme to assist the poor.

edmond.campbell@gleanerjm.com