Pringle says the people should resist hike in gas price while the PM treats the Government like his private entity

Opposition Leader Jamale Pringle is calling on the people of Antigua
and Barbuda to stand up and resist the most recent hike in gas
prices.

Pringle says he was very surprised by the hike in the cost of gas,
which took effect last Friday, March 22, with notice given only on
Wednesday night.
 
The price moved from $13.99 to $14.50 per gallon, while the price
for diesel remained

at $14.25 per gallon – although the West Indies Oil Company had
reported a 2 percent decrease in its purchase price.

In response, Pringle says the Government needs to protect citizens
at this time and not place further hardships on them.

The All Saints East & St. Luke MP reiterates that the hike was an
unconscionable act on the part of the Gaston Browne Administration
– especially at a time when people are paying more for goods and
services on account of the 2 percent increase in the Antigua and
Barbuda Sales Tax (ABST), along with other taxes that were recently
increased. 
 
While lifetime concessions are being given to foreign interests,
Pringle declares that the people of Antigua and Barbuda are
“catching hell,” a situation he describes as quite sad.
The Opposition leader is of the opinion that the Government could
have absorbed this recent increase in the gas price, given the
amount of profit it made during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Meanwhile, Pringle is also concerned that households and
businesses will have to pay more in electricity bills.
 
If this is the case, he says, consumers will again be burdened by
spending more, as businesses will pass the price increase on to
them. 
 
In the meantime, the Opposition leader says, the prime minister is
giving his family members sweet deals and many concessions – on

the backs of taxpayers – and treating the Government like his
private entity.

That was Opposition Leader Jamale Pringle.