GEORGE’S, Grenada (CMC) — The Grenada Government is defending a decision not to decrease the price of gasoline to the motorists even though there has been a decline on the international market for the commodity.

Prime Minister and Minister of Finance Dr Keith Mitchell said that the non-reduction of gas prices at the pump is a prudent and innovative move by his Administration in the interest of the country.

Despite the decline on the international market, gas is being sold here at EC$13.45 (One EC dollar =US$0.37 cents) a gallon for the last three months.

A number of people have taken to the media to voice their concerns over the high prices and Prime Minister Mitchell said that under the Structural Adjustment Programme, funds would have to be found or non-progressive action taken to keep in line with the programme for the period 2016.

He said had the reduction in prices taken place, property tax would have had to be increased and hundreds of public servants would have lost their jobs.

Mitchell said that his administration had to find an alternative method of securing the amount of money that would have come from the additional Property Tax and so it was decided to leave the price at the pump.

“If we leave the price as it was, which people are already paying, the government will benefit an extra dollar on every gallon of gas”, he said, pointing out that the money over a year is more than the property tax increases.

Prime Minister Mitchell urged citizens to judge for themselves, which of the options is better — to make the sacrifice on a gallon of gas, or to increase property tax.

“Tell me which one you prefer. It makes a lot of sense. We are not wicked”, he said.

“If we don’t retrench, if we don’t take the extra savings from the petrol tax that we have and if we don’t increase the property tax we lose the EC$100 million the World Bank and IMF give us. Tell me which one you want to do,” he added.