Cabinet agrees to Defence Force pay hike, scholarships for disabled

Cabinet yesterday agreed to salary increases for members of the Defence Force, and it also decided to establish and implement a local scholarship scheme for students with disabilities.

Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Christine Kangaloo, speaking at a post-Cabinet news briefing at Whitehall, said that the scholarship would be for the undergraduate programme at the University of the West Indies and would only be available to those persons who meet UWI’s academic entry requirements. Noting that there are approximately 1,500 disabled students between the ages of 17 and 19 in secondary schools, she said many disabled persons are capable of pursuing tertiary education but are denied the opportunity because of funding. She said that the cost of education for a student with a disability was higher than that of a student without a disability because of the additional expenses relating to support services and aid devices.

Public Administration Minister Dr Lenny Saith, who reported on the salary increases for the members of the Defence Force, stated that Cabinet considered and accepted the report of a special committee which looked at this issue. The total cost of implementation of these increases was $85.35 million — $65.16 million for salaries and $20.19 million for allowances, Saith said. These increases cover the period January 2002 to December 2004. The rates of the increases ranged from 10 percent to 15 percent over the three-year period based on the ranking of the officers. Saith said there were also revised rates for the ration allowance and rent allowance which had been increased from $650 and $1,000 to $2,000 and $2,500 respectively. There were also increases for entertainment allowance and uniform allowance. PM Patrick Manning announced that the Cabinet yesterday agreed to the establishment of  a committee to engage in round table discussions on race relations at the Prime Minister’s office. 

The members are Pearl Entou Springer (Emancipation Support Committee), Selwyn Cudjoe (National Association for the Empowerment of African People), Grafton La Borde (Club L’Ouverture), Sat Maharaj (Maha Sabha), Deokienanan Sharma (National Council of Indian Culture) and Yacoob Ali (Muslim Co-ordinating Council).