Action to restore 2014 Budget cuts imminent

Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh

FINANCE Minister Dr. Ashni Singh has disclosed that action is “imminent” to restore critically needed funds that were cut from the 2014 Budget.The reduction was reflected in the Appropriation Act that was passed in the National Assembly on April 16 and assented to by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, acting in the capacity of Head of State, on April 29.

The legislation, reflecting a whopping $37.4B cut from an original allocation of $220B, affected the payment of salaries for public servants, as well, given the urgency of the situation.

Speaking at a press conference, hosted at the National Communications Network (NCN) studio on Thursday evening, the Finance Minister said:
“I can assure that action is imminent…we intend to be guided by the Constitution and statutory provision and by the Acting Chief Justice’s ruling to address the budget cuts and any instance of appropriations being inadequate to meet a public purpose.”

“I can assure that action is imminent…we intend to be guided by the Constitution and statutory provision and by the Acting Chief Justice’s ruling to address the budget cuts and any instance of appropriations being inadequate to meet a public purpose” – Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh

Last January 29, Acting Chief Justice Ian Chang ruled that the National Assembly has no right to cut the National Budget.

In the June 12 preliminary ruling, the judge had said the National Assembly has a role to either approve or disapprove of the National Estimates, not to reduce them.

PRONOUNCED AUTHORITATIVELY
Dr. Singh said: “We have available to us both the constitutional and statutory authorities that were repeated in the Acting Chief Justice’s ruling, which pronounced authoritatively on the unconstitutionality of the actions taken by the Opposition and it pronounced authoritatively on the Government’s authority in relation to public expenditure.”

The Finance Minister, however, expressed his reluctance to commit to a particular timeframe for a move towards action in this regard, but acknowledged the necessity for urgent action.

“It is a matter that is engaging active current considerations and actions…I would stop short of giving a precise timeline…I share the sense of urgency,” he said.

Minister Singh rejected assertions that the Government is delaying the move to seek the restoration of monies that were cut for the sake of political mileage and pointed out that the Government was not the party that did it in the first place.

“We were not the ones who cut the Budget and, were it not cut we would have implemented it as submitted to the Parliament. It was not our action that resulted in this action and therefore caused the pain (for the people).
“…we have to consider, we have to weigh before us the statutory and constitutional, as well as other authorities and be guided accordingly.

“It is in our (Government’s) interest to have these projects and payments, under different allocations to be made, which is why we included them in the Budget…we are as anxious as anyone else (for the restoration of some of the monies cut).”

BEING ADVANCED
The Finance Minister assured that action is “not far away” from being advanced.

Under the allocation for Office of the President, the cuts include $245M for the Presidential Guard services; $95M for the provision of developmental and humanitarian aid among other initiatives; $10M for the Office of the First Lady; $73.5M for the Guyana Energy Agency; $119M for Guyana Office for Investment (Go-Invest); $122M for the Institute of Applied Science and Technology (IAST); $17M for the Integrity Commission and $28.5M for the Office of the Commissioner of Information.

The other cuts included $18.5B for the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) initiatives; $450M for loans for University of Guyana Students; $725M for the poverty alleviation programme; $7M for the different rights commissions; $795M for the Basic Needs Trust Fund (BNTF); and $4M for support to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and the Private Sector.

On the chopping block too were the Specialty Hospital $910M; upgrading of Regional and District Hospitals, including Port Kaituma, Kwakwani, Linden, Bartica, Eye Surgery Operating Room at Linden, etc., $360M; ambulances, ATVs and Boats $42M; surgical equipment and instruments $32M; Amerindian Development Fund $1.1B; other Amerindian Programmes $40M; Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) modernisation project $6.6B; Civil Aviation $50M and Hinterland Airstrips $185M.

Last year, the combined Opposition cut the Budget by $31B and in 2012 by $21B.