- Audley Shaw
JAMAICA LABOUR Party (JLP) spokesman on finance, Audley Shaw, has described the Govern-ment's launch of an islandwide production drive, "Production Train", yesterday as "a cruel public relations gimmick".
Mr. Shaw, the opposition spokesman on finance, said that the drive, "was aimed at fooling the people once again, giving them a false sense of optimism that something positive was about to happen in the economy."
He was speaking at a public meeting in Duckensfield, Eastern St. Thomas, on Saturday night.
Mr. Shaw charged that "this latest public relations gimmick" would involve JAMPRO paying a public relations company some $5 million to implement a campaign in support of the programme. However, he claimed that: "No production will take place out of this exercise. It's just another PR gimmick which will end up as a $15 million gravy train."
Mr. Shaw stated that the Government had not yet come to grips with the negative issues which were hindering investment in production, including continuing high interest rates, high utility rates with further increases looming, unfavourable trading practices as well as inadequate training and retraining of workers.
He took note of a letter written to him as the chairman of the House of Representatives' Public Accounts Committee chairman by JLP caretaker for Eastern St. Thomas, Dennis Wright, in which Mr. Wright requested an investigation into a number of suspected corrupt practices taking place at several government agencies and projects in the constituency.
Minister of Industry, Commerce and Technology, Phillip Paulwell, announced last week that the "Production Train," is an islandwide programme to inform Jamai-cans about business opportunities and resources available to them.
