In a recent political address, Malaka Parker, the United Progressive Party’s candidate for St. John’s Rural North, launched sharp criticisms against the ruling Antigua and Barbuda Labour Party administration. Parker asserted that the PDV CAB social safety-net initiative has undergone a fundamental transformation from its original design as an impartial protection system to a politically-motivated assistance scheme.
The program, initially established during the UPP’s previous administration, was conceived as a rules-based social protection mechanism aimed at cushioning vulnerable households against volatility in global oil markets. Parker emphasized that the program’s original architecture supported over 10,000 households through a transparent framework that operated independently of political influence.
According to the opposition candidate, PDV CAB derived its funding from savings and dividends generated through oil procurement rather than conventional taxation methods. This financial structure, she contended, created an insulated system where beneficiaries received support without requiring political endorsements or discretionary approvals from government officials.
The program specifically prioritized female-headed households, elderly pensioners, children, and grandparents raising grandchildren—demographics that aligned with the UPP’s social protection philosophy under former Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer’s leadership.
Parker criticized the current government for dismantling this structured approach, arguing that its replacement with voucher-based assistance and discretionary distribution has made essential support contingent upon political engagement rather than objective need. This shift, she maintained, compromises the dignity, fairness, and predictability that vulnerable citizens should expect from social safety programs.
The ABLP government has previously justified its social support initiatives as necessary responses to economic challenges and escalating living costs, though specific rebuttals to these latest allegations have not yet been issued.