Metry Seaga, president of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), is dismissing assertions that the Holness administration’s policy shift towards economic growth is aimed at wooing uptown votes, asserting instead that it is the only way for Jamaica to become a major global economy.
“You can always be cynical, and I try not to be. I am viewing it as a move in the right direction, not for uptown or downtown, but for all of Jamaica. The bottom line is that our economy is too small, and we need a bigger economy,” Seaga said yesterday.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness on Tuesday said that Jamaica had achieved “economic stability” and that it was now time to enter a new phase of “inclusive growth”, where every Jamaican could realise their dreams and aspirations.
He said consideration is being given to removing taxes on tips and an efficiency committee to help boost economic growth. He has consistently argued that bureaucracy in government has slowed growth plans.
However, the announcement being made months before a general election becomes due has drawn cynicism from some Jamaicans who believe that the policy pivot will not factor in vulnerable Jamaicans who are not positively impacted by the current economic climate.
Seaga has argued, though, that a bigger economy will produce more taxes, better social benefits, and better-paying jobs to capture them.
“That economy will produce all the things that the people of Jamaica, not uptown or downtown, but every single soul who lives in this country needs. We need to be a richer economy, and one of the ways to do that is to grow the size of the economy, and that is how we’re going to get people to start to feel the benefits,” said Seaga.
“Could we have done it before? The answer is absolutely not. We just didn’t have the platform. We didn’t have the economic stability [or] the fiscal space to do it.”
He said Holness’ plans cover the business community, singling out small businesses, foreign direct investments, and a move to address bureaucracy.
He said the Government’s recognition of the “deep-rooted” issues surrounding the inefficiencies of government is critical and lauded the establishment of ‘EPOC 2’.
His reference to EPOC 2 concerns the creation of an ‘Efficiency Programme Oversight Committee’, which is expected to lead efforts to reduce inefficiencies within the public sector.
It is the twin of the Economic Programme Oversight Committee (EPOC) that was set up to monitor the fiscal, monetary, and financial-sector indicators under the Precautionary Standby Agreement with the International Monetary Fund.
“The Jamaican bureaucracy has become self-serving. It’s there to cross the ‘I’s and dot the ‘T’s and has no concern as to whether or not the country grows. That must change ... . I cannot pivot without dealing with the muscles of the athlete, which is the bureaucracy. That is what gets the things done,” Holness said on Tuesday.
He stated that certain laws and regulations would be amended to align with these new goals.