#TurksandCaicos, March 3, 2021 – Hundreds
did not wait for today, they eagerly logged onto the Government’s stimulus
website to apply for the Monday-announced $1,000 cash relief earmarked for
Turks and Caicos Islanders and British Overseas Territories Citizens amidst the
depriving Coronavirus pandemic.
“There
is no cap on how many can get the stimulus cash once they qualify,” says EJ
Saunders, new Minister of Health and TCI Deputy Premier.
In
a one-on-one with Magnetic Media overnight, the Deputy Premier said while there
is an $11 million amount allotted for this round of free money, it does not
necessarily equate to exactly 1,100 people getting the funds,” he said, if
necessary, “we will pay out more.”
The
point is to get money into the hands of our people and get the economy
re-booted, explained Hon Saunders.
That
is good news given the level of interest for the money. Even islanders from abroad who have struggled
in the pandemic are trying to get some of the cash.
Saunders
said there is no process to exclude islanders who live abroad but the fact that
one has to collect the $1000 in person at the Treasury reduces the likelihood
those TCIs living outside the country will flood the system.
Officially,
the system will be live for registration at 3pm March 3 (today) and the
applications will be accepted until March 12 with payments to be dispersed by
end of the month which is when the current fiscal year closes.
Residents
did not wait for today however, the registrations started since late Tuesday.
While
residents are concerned at how thousands of cheques will be distributed in such
a short time span, the new government says it is determined to see it
done. The concerns expressed to Magnetic
Media have not slowed the swarm of interest; though some have reported glitches
like not receiving their confirmation email and crashes of the site.
The
Deputy Premier, who is personally supporting the IT management of what is
expected to be entertain thousands of requests, said once a confirmation number
is generated; individuals are in the system.
The
plan is to, by next week, establish help desks for people who require
assistance to apply for the cash; these desks will be especially important in the
Family Islands, he said.
Cheques
said Saunders will be distributed in alphabetical order at the Treasury
offices.
The
PNP managed to deliver on a key campaign promise after only 9 days of being
elected to government.
