Draconian budgetary cuts by joint opposition … Finance Minister accuses joint opposition of wielding tyrannical scissors
- results will be social and economic dislocation of thousands of Guyanese people in myriads of ways, all across the country
Written by PARVATI PERSAUD-EDWARDS
Thursday, 26 April 2012 13:42
Source - Guyana Chronicle
The incomprehensible and illogical budgetary cuts imposed by the joint opposition on the peoples of Guyana is nothing less than an anti-people act of vengeance to assuage personal grievances against the government of Guyana and its functionaries; as well as ego-massaging grandstanding.
In an invited comment at Parliament Building yesterday Attorney-General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall averred that the joint opposition has used its parliamentary mandate conferred upon them by the people of Guyana in the general elections of November 2011 as an instrument of oppression against those very people, which he termed as the greatest act of political treachery and betrayal in Guyana’s parliamentary history.
“Sixty years ago”, recalled Nandlall, “parliamentarians used the votes of the people in the colonial Legislative Assembly to protect the vested interests of the plantocracy. Today, we have witnessed a full circle, where the mandate of the people has been manipulated to protect the vested interests of the politocracy.”
He termed this an overthrow of constitutional democracy.
According to Nandlall, the programmes for which budgetary allocations have been reduced are all of a social nature designed to advance the welfare of the people of the country – stretching from Crabwood Creek to Charity, Morawhana to Aishalton: in effect all across Guyana, which will affect every class; but more especially the most vulnerable members of society.
Alluding to cuts to the elections machinery, Nandlall posited: “Significantly, the people’s ability to rectify this wrong by proceeding to early elections is also under siege because of drastic cuts to GECOM’s budget. This de-gutting of budgetary subventions for vital sections of the Government is a complete conspiracy to assassinate democracy and representative governance.”
An obviously shaken and appalled Finance Minister referred to the appallingly senseless budgetary cuts to vital sectors of the country’s administration machinery as a “wielding of tyrannical scissors” through a one-seat majority.
Director of GINA, Neaz Subhan, informed the Chronicle that in excess of 40 employees of GINA will be affected by the budgetary cuts. He said that his normally hard-working staff members are in a state of shock, with many breaking down in tears when they were informed that their place of employment has been effectively stricken off the media landscape by the “tyrannical scissors” of the joint opposition.
Subhan justified the existence of GINA as an information collator and disseminator of Government’s policies and programmes and said that existence of a Government news agency is not unique to Guyana, but is an important adjunct to governments all over the world.
Averring that the public has a fundamental right to be informed on Government’s policies and developmental programmes, Subhan said that the agency’s staff members, who have become collateral damage in the vindictive and spiteful actions of the joint parliamentary opposition, are merely professional people doing a job as per their skills and knowledge, with political affiliations not being a component of their professional mandate, which are not subjective to any other consideration except those applying to their professional job descriptions.
This complete budgetary cut is effectively meant to muzzle the government through its information arm and deprive the nation of its fundamental right to information on issues that have a bearing on their existence and survival, singly and collectively.
Subhan stated, “Here is an opposition that used an electioneering strategy of telling the people that they are interested in their welfare, an opposition that has accused the government of not creating employment opportunities, yet they are using their minute power to deprive people of their jobs without considering the social consequences and negative impacts to lives and livelihoods of the ordinary workers of the country.”
However, Subhan says GINA’s staff remains united and committed, and will continue to demonstrate their resentment of the anti working-class opposition actions.
AGENDA OF JOINT OPPOSITION
NCN’s Chief Executive Officer, Mohamed Sattaur, has accused the joint opposition of going to parliament with an apparent agenda, with APNU’s Carl Greenidge proposing a complete cut of the state media’s current subvention, which pays 30% of NCN’s employee salaries, which means that the jobs of 30% of the in excess of 225 employees of NCN will be affected; and with the AFC’s Khemraj Ramjattan proposing complete cut of the entity’s capital subvention, which will wipe out NCN’s ability to produce any local programme or cover any national event; also which will bring to an immediate halt coverage of any sporting, cultural, social and educational programmes because of a lack of affordability.
According to Sattaur, cricket lovers will be deprived of their much-loved games; whilst coverage of the imminent Olympics will be in jeopardy. Screening of other sporting events, both local and international, will also be severely restricted, if not halted altogether. Educational programmes will be curtailed, and cultural and social activities will also be restricted. Through the puerile self-serving agendas of the joint opposition, the entire nation will be negatively impacted and starved of information and entertainment.
Sattaur informed the Chronicle that Greenidge, Ramjattan and Nagamootoo said that unless they get free coverage in the state media they would vote down the budgetary allocations for the entities. However, Sattaur said that as a state media, NCN airs all GINA’s productions on Government’s programmes and policies, with government functionaries speaking on current affairs issues relating to governance of the country, which is adherence to the people’s constitutional right to information; but he denied that any political party, including PPP/C is given free airtime.
He also refuted Granger’s allegations that APNU is not allowed time on NCN, citing a recent event in Linden where Granger was given full-length live coverage.
However, he said that during elections, the opposition parties wanted unlimited airtime free of cost and rejected the limited free time that they were offered by NCN, thus they boycotted all state media. According to Sattaur, they also always refuse to participate in any panel discussions hosted by that state entity.
Bishop Juan Edghill said the state media is a national asset that contributes to social, cultural and educational programming; as well as most sporting events – both national and international.
GOVERNMENT SUPPORT PROMISED
Briefly addressing state media staffers holding an impromptu candlelight vigil outside of Parliament buildings last night, Housing and Water Minister, Irfaan Ali promised government’s support to the public sector employees affected by the cuts, because they are not working from a political platform, but are merely professionals performing their mandated duties according their employment portfolios.
The PNC, which muzzled the press while in government, is trying its utmost to again muzzle the press while in opposition, with full support from the AFC. However, it is unlikely that they will succeed in their evil intent. They did not succeed before, and they will not succeed now.
Historically the PNC has always oppressed and betrayed public servants, and in his budget presentation Attorney-General Anil Nandlall revealed the way Guyana’s public servants had been treated by the PNC regime
BLOWN AWAY
For a government that has transformed the socio-economic dynamics of this nation where the developmental trajectory is poised for flight skywards to be sanctioned by the very persons who destroyed the economy and social and physical infrastructures in this country is presumptuousness of the highest order, especially when a sanctimonious Granger and Greenidge, with their abysmal track records of human rights; as well as the vindictive and spiteful Ramjattan/Nagamootoo duo, who are only intent on taking vengeance on their former comrades for their ouster from the PPP, can constrain social development and economic growth in the nation with their malicious budgetary cuts, merely for purposes of self-aggrandizement and ego-massaging.
And by the way, did the “tyrannical scissors” cut the budgetary allocations of the opposition MP’s and the astronomical remuneration and benefits of the leader of the opposition? Or is it only the president who is being deprived of his aides, while Granger enjoys all the rights and benefits conferred upon his office, ironically, by the PPP/C regime when they had the majority in the House; rights and benefits which, conversely, they had denied Dr. Cheddi Jagan when he was Leader of the Opposition.
And that is what separates the true leaders from the charlatans. True leaders subsume personal considerations for the national good; while the charlatans promise much, but only deliver grief and destruction.
Finance Minister Dr. Ashni Singh and the entire PPP/C governmental team under successive PPP/C presidents, especially Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, the architect of modern Guyana, have rescued this nation from the PNC hurricane once before.
After 19 years of their astute stewardship, there is little doubt that they will weather this latest PNC storm. The AFC? Well, they are so minute that they will soon be blown away into the nothingness from whence they came.
Last Updated on Thursday, 26 April 2012 13:48
