PRIME Minister Portia Simpson Miller says details have not yet been worked out for the $635-million temporary work programme she announced at Sunday’s annual conference of the People’s National Party (PNP).

“I did not go into details. because I do not have the details. The agencies with responsibility are now working out the details of that programme,” the prime minister told a post-conference press briefing at the People’s National Party’s headquarters in Kingston on Monday.

“All I can say (is that) the people will be paid more than the National Minimum Wage. If you are putting people on projects, it doesn’t mean that one person will be working for six months. We are targeting 12,000 persons,” she added.

Simpson Miller said she understood that people were already questioning the programme and using simple arithmetic to work out the wages without even asking what kind of programme and how it would operate.

The prime minister also criticised persons who have suggested that it was an election works programme.

“I wonder why? Why is it that every time something is to happen to help poor people, to help the people who are suffering, there is always a cry, and even some people who are just one step from poverty?” she asked.

She said that the programme would not be just cleaning up for visitors coming to next year’s Cricket World Cup.

“I made it clear, that we are cleaning up first of all for ourselves. We are going to be cleaning up comunities…we are going to be removing garbage, old vehicles, we want to clean up the country and, certainly, we must do some cleaning up if we are hosting world cup 2007,” she said.