NewsWhore
07-13-2011, 02:40 PM
The Minister of Economy, Planning and Development, Temistocles Montas said that the authorities are conscious of the fact that the country is facing a difficult economic situation, which in his judgment has been generated as a consequence of an rising fuel and commodity prices that have affected the Dominican Republic and the world. It is precisely because of these difficulties that Montas says that there is very little that the government can do to satisfy the demands of the organizers of the Monday national strike.
Speaking to reporters form all of the newspapers in the Presidential Palace, Montas said: "I believe that the situation of the oil prices is public knowledge; it is something that does not depend on the will of the government, but rather it is determined by what happens on the international level."
He said that the situation that the country is going through is in no way the fault of the government, but rather of international problems, while at the same time he said that in the country over the last few years and in spite of the crisis, the poverty and the social inequalities have not increased.
To hear Montas tell it, the demands that the organizers made are not in accord with the reality that the world is experiencing, and that laid out in these terms, means to worsen the situation of the country because it would produce inflation. Among the demands of the strike callers are to repeal the recently approved tax reform, lower the price of the electricity and the prices of foods.
Montas said that the reading of the situation that generated the national work stoppage and which ended at 6pm yesterday morning had been taken by the government long before the strike was carried out.
Regarding the increases in the price of food, the official reminded the reporters that in spite of the efforts that the government makes to push for national production, several products require imported raw materials, and therefore, "when these (raw materials) go up, this is reflected in the country," even when there is interest in avoiding it. Using data from the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), Montas said that the latest study by this agency says that the price index of the food worldwide is now the highest since 2008.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#3)
Speaking to reporters form all of the newspapers in the Presidential Palace, Montas said: "I believe that the situation of the oil prices is public knowledge; it is something that does not depend on the will of the government, but rather it is determined by what happens on the international level."
He said that the situation that the country is going through is in no way the fault of the government, but rather of international problems, while at the same time he said that in the country over the last few years and in spite of the crisis, the poverty and the social inequalities have not increased.
To hear Montas tell it, the demands that the organizers made are not in accord with the reality that the world is experiencing, and that laid out in these terms, means to worsen the situation of the country because it would produce inflation. Among the demands of the strike callers are to repeal the recently approved tax reform, lower the price of the electricity and the prices of foods.
Montas said that the reading of the situation that generated the national work stoppage and which ended at 6pm yesterday morning had been taken by the government long before the strike was carried out.
Regarding the increases in the price of food, the official reminded the reporters that in spite of the efforts that the government makes to push for national production, several products require imported raw materials, and therefore, "when these (raw materials) go up, this is reflected in the country," even when there is interest in avoiding it. Using data from the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), Montas said that the latest study by this agency says that the price index of the food worldwide is now the highest since 2008.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#3)