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The Move­ment for So­cial Jus­tice (MSJ) said too many cit­i­zens are strug­gling, even as T&T marks 49 years as a Re­pub­lic.

In its Re­pub­lic Day mes­sage, the par­ty point­ed to what it de­scribed as a “failed ed­u­ca­tion sys­tem,” not­ing that half of stu­dents do not pass crit­i­cal ex­ams such as SEA and CSEC. Many young peo­ple, it ar­gued, are left un­em­ployed or trapped in low-paid, short-term jobs that do not match their tal­ents.

“Too many cit­i­zens can’t make ends meet, can hard­ly make it to the next pay day, and very many don’t have mon­ey to put food on the ta­ble,” the MSJ said, warn­ing that pover­ty and lack of hope are fu­elling crime.