Published 11 December 2022
Basseterre
Buckie Got It, St.Kitts and Nevis News Source
NRP plans include care facility for the elderly, programmes supporting males
A CARE FACILITY FOR THE ELDERLY will be one of several novelties in the social sector the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP) will pursue when elected to office following Monday’s polls promised Jaedee Caines.
“We want to ensure that there is a day care facility for our seniors. [We know that] many of you have your elderly parents who you don’t want to put in a nursing home, but you don’t have anyone at home to care for them because you go to work. We are offering an opportunity where you can drop off [your elderly relatives] when you go to work and pick up on your way back home,” Caines said explaining the NRP vision.
NRP, she said, is aware of the hardships the elderly and the families face daily and the party plans to help relieve their daily strains. Caines said the care facility will help provide seniors with opportunities to interact with their peers.
Meanwhile the NRP candidate unveiled social sector programmes NRP plans introducing as part of its first five-year vision. One of them targets the heavily-criticised-and-maligned-but-often-ignored male section of the Charlestown population.
“Many of our young men get a lot of word (invectives) as we say locally. Many of them are being called ‘dead-beat-dads’ but the reality is that there are many among us who are doing an excellent job and I maintain that many of them reside in my constituency,” Caines said.
“I want to highlight that. So, you young men who are doing great things and pulling your weight, believe it or not it benefits all of us, because our children need strong role models and we want to incentivise your efforts,” she forecasted.
“Your next parliamentary representative wants to incentivise your efforts and you will benefit from discounts at various department stores. You will be able to benefit from incentives that we will be offering; whether it be fast-track to housing [because] we have to recognised the young men who are holding their own; we have to recognise them for doing their job. We fight them down enough; it’s time to lift those up who are doing great things,” Caines stressed.
NRP also plans reimplementing after-school programmes on the island.
Said she, “We want to bring back the after-school programme. When I talk about after school programme let me tell you why these are important: These are important because many of our children end school at about 3.30pm, but their parents get off work after 4, after 5 some even later. So, it means that our children in many instances are at home unattended. what are proposing is that the children be enrolled in a programme which will include extra-curricular activities.”
Furthermore, “they can learn, sewing and knitting. They are a lot of things that they can do, by doing that we are teaching them a trade or skill to ensure that they are in a safe place until their parents come for them. Additionally, we will be creating employment, because it is not the same teachers or people who are with them from 8.30 am to 3.30 pm who will be with them after school. We also want to offer assistance to the children with their homework.”
“Many patents are unable to offer help with homework because what the children are learning now is completely different from what we learnt in our time. Plus, some of us don’t have the patience to deal with our own children, and that is ok. You may not have the patience in that area, also some are working two and three jobs and we want to help you…so we will assist in bringing back the homework assistance programme,” Caines detailed.
“That is why it is under Community and Social Development and not under education, because these are community programmes, these things impact our community,” Caines explained.
