Prime Minister Gaston Browne has made a call urging wealthier residents of Antigua and Barbuda to contribute more financially to societal advancement.

Appearing on the Browne and Browne show last Saturday, he proposed that their role in the country’s advancement should extend beyond just their professional contributions.

“You can’t just be hoarding and hoarding,” said the Prime Minister. “Our professionals – I notice some of them, right? – Over the decades they’re minting money, and they would not even sponsor a little basketball team, a little football team.”

“We’re a small society, we have to help each other – we have to be socially responsible.”

The Prime Minister specifically pointed to the nation’s financial institutions as key players that can enhance civic prosperity, particularly since they have reaped the rewards of his administration’s policies.

“As far as I’m concerned the banks in particular, they can do more,“ said the PM. “When you look at the policy decisions of my administration – they way in which the profits of ACB and ECAB and so on would have increased – they can do more to help the arts, to help sports, and they cannot be so selfish.”

Even companies like WIOC were not spared from the Prime Minister’s critique. He humorously mentioned a situation involving CEO Gregory Georges, suggesting that he was overly frugal, stating that he was “too mean.”

“The more you earn, it’s the more you’re supposed to give,” explained PM Browne. “To whom much is given, much is required.”