Continued Distortions of Presidential Pension
Source - GINA
The Office of the Prime Minister has noted the repetitive efforts being made by the political opposition parties, and regurgitated by much of the media, about the pension of President Bharrat Jagdeo, which would be the same as for all Presidents.
Despite timely and extensive clarifications, including correction of false and misleading statements, the opposition political parties and the media continue to peddle the same distortions.
In that context, the public is reminded that the procedure for the computation of the pension of Presidents and Members of Parliament is the same as that established in the Laws of Guyana even before Mr. Jagdeo was elected as President.
The rule that will be used to compute any past President’s pension is that same rule that was applied to compute the pension of former Presidents, including Arthur Chung, Forbes Burnham, Desmond Hoyte, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, Samuel A.A. Hinds, and Mrs. Janet Jagan.
The efforts by the opposition parties and their media fanatics to dramatise the value of the allowances and benefits given to past Presidents, ignore the fact that not one of the benefits and allowances given to President Jagdeo is new. They were all available to former Presidents!
What is different, is that after fifteen years in Government, during which time nearly everyone pointed to a national disgrace and dangers in the low rates of pay of Parliamentarians, their rates of pay were increased, with the pay of the President being raised to that of the Attorney-General, which pay had been set equal to that of the Chancellor since the 1980s, when Mr. Burnham wanted to attract a Chancellor to become Attorney-General, ignoring the anomalous situation thus created, with the Attorney-General being paid more than the President and all other Cabinet Members.
What the PPP/C Government did, was to make the pay more reasonable, and the entitlements to those benefits and allowances rules-based and provided for in the Laws of Guyana. With all now established in law, the continuation of the exercise of the discretion exercised by previous Governments is not needed, and is avoided, such as the 1985-to-1992 PNC-Government that allowed Mr. Hoyte, as President, to receive $9M annually as a clothing allowance, no doubt to make up for the official low rate of pay!
The records would show that the coverage for expenses for medical care was another discretion extended humanely, and provided to every single former President, many of whom were elderly and, unfortunately, had to have recourse to those benefits and allowances.
It should not be overlooked that the exercise of that discretion was not only extended to Presidents, such as Chung and Hoyte, but also to MPs such as Robert Corbin, Winston Murray and, more recently, to others such as Everall Franklin and Shelia Holder.
It is regrettable that Members of the Opposition and the media, being unable to identify real elections issues, have stooped to new ‘lows’ in trying to beguile and deceive and agitate the Guyanese voters. Many who advocated that Presidents and surviving spouses should be able to live comfortably, holding their heads up high, now find it convenient to attack what they advocated. Be warned, they mean not what they say!
Samuel A.A. Hinds, O.E., M.P.,
Prime Minister.
November 3, 2011
Source - GINA
The Office of the Prime Minister has noted the repetitive efforts being made by the political opposition parties, and regurgitated by much of the media, about the pension of President Bharrat Jagdeo, which would be the same as for all Presidents.
Despite timely and extensive clarifications, including correction of false and misleading statements, the opposition political parties and the media continue to peddle the same distortions.
In that context, the public is reminded that the procedure for the computation of the pension of Presidents and Members of Parliament is the same as that established in the Laws of Guyana even before Mr. Jagdeo was elected as President.
The rule that will be used to compute any past President’s pension is that same rule that was applied to compute the pension of former Presidents, including Arthur Chung, Forbes Burnham, Desmond Hoyte, Dr. Cheddi Jagan, Samuel A.A. Hinds, and Mrs. Janet Jagan.
The efforts by the opposition parties and their media fanatics to dramatise the value of the allowances and benefits given to past Presidents, ignore the fact that not one of the benefits and allowances given to President Jagdeo is new. They were all available to former Presidents!
What is different, is that after fifteen years in Government, during which time nearly everyone pointed to a national disgrace and dangers in the low rates of pay of Parliamentarians, their rates of pay were increased, with the pay of the President being raised to that of the Attorney-General, which pay had been set equal to that of the Chancellor since the 1980s, when Mr. Burnham wanted to attract a Chancellor to become Attorney-General, ignoring the anomalous situation thus created, with the Attorney-General being paid more than the President and all other Cabinet Members.
What the PPP/C Government did, was to make the pay more reasonable, and the entitlements to those benefits and allowances rules-based and provided for in the Laws of Guyana. With all now established in law, the continuation of the exercise of the discretion exercised by previous Governments is not needed, and is avoided, such as the 1985-to-1992 PNC-Government that allowed Mr. Hoyte, as President, to receive $9M annually as a clothing allowance, no doubt to make up for the official low rate of pay!
The records would show that the coverage for expenses for medical care was another discretion extended humanely, and provided to every single former President, many of whom were elderly and, unfortunately, had to have recourse to those benefits and allowances.
It should not be overlooked that the exercise of that discretion was not only extended to Presidents, such as Chung and Hoyte, but also to MPs such as Robert Corbin, Winston Murray and, more recently, to others such as Everall Franklin and Shelia Holder.
It is regrettable that Members of the Opposition and the media, being unable to identify real elections issues, have stooped to new ‘lows’ in trying to beguile and deceive and agitate the Guyanese voters. Many who advocated that Presidents and surviving spouses should be able to live comfortably, holding their heads up high, now find it convenient to attack what they advocated. Be warned, they mean not what they say!
Samuel A.A. Hinds, O.E., M.P.,
Prime Minister.
November 3, 2011
