- Minister Whittaker

THE City Hall budget was presented yesterday with a projected deficit of some $246.7M but Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Mr. Norman Whittaker declared that the Government will not fund any deficit budgets.Speaking at the ruling People’s Progressive Party (PPP) weekly press conference, in Freedom House, Robb Street, Georgetown, he criticised the City Hall executive for improper management of its resources.
He said: “Our Government recognised this laxity, on the part of the City Council, many years ago and that is why, notwithstanding the fact that the existing legislation allows the Council to prepare and approve its own annual estimates, Government has sought, through the sector ministry to ensure that council’s annual budget estimates emanates out of a process of consultation with residents and focuses, inter alia, in providing core services, such as proper drainage, efficient solid waste management, vending in markets and market tarmacs under good sanitary conditions, removal of thick vegetation ensuring that the incidents of breeches of building codes are addressed.
“…we have sought to work with the Council to get the body to address the inadequacies and inefficiencies highlighted in the Keith Burrowes’ Report. These include issues of transparency of procurement, accountability, debt collection, management etc.”
Distance itself
The minister noted that the City Council, with Mayor Hamilton Green at its helm, has sought to distance itself from “this transparent arrangement” that is aimed at assisting the Council to do what is right for the citizens of Georgetown and, by extension, Guyana.
“The budget is merely an exercise of adhocracy,” he emphasised.
The 2014 Budget averages revenue collection of $2.05 billion and has a total estimated expenditure of $2.3 billion, which gives rise to the $246.7M deficit.
“You have to cut your coat,” the minister advised.
According to Whittaker, the Budget, which was submitted to his ministry, has questionable allocations.
He noted that it reflects increases for several items related to remuneration of staffers but there were no increases allocated to ensure proper delivery of core services.
The minister went on: “A mere 28 percent of this inflow (revenue) is set aside for capital works.”
Whittaker pointed out that a significant portion of the budget is related to staffing expenses and there is an allocation for a further rise in staffing capacity, when the current complement is itself under-utilised.
He said: “Employment cost and employment overheads stand at 56 percent of total anticipated inflows and, while overtime continues to be featured high in the budget, the budgeted staff strength, which in the ministry’s 2013 review was already high, increased by four percent for 2014, that is, the Council plans to add more numbers to the already underutilised staff.
“Provisions are made for increases of Councillors’ stipend and allowances as well as gratuity for a poorly performing Council.”
The minister remarked that the proportions of the allocations are “unheard” of.
He said: “The Council, in its 2014 budget proposal, plans to expend $2.3 billion out of anticipated revenue inflow of $2.05 billion.
No explanation
“In other words, the Council plans to spend almost $250M more than what it plans to receive. There is no explanation as to how the Council will finance this deficit.
“…the Council plans to spend almost 70 percent of the citizens’ rates and taxes for 2014 on themselves and staff with a current liability of $1.3 billion, including debts to Guyana Power & Light, National Insurance Scheme and Guyana Revenue Authority.”
The minister stated that the current Administration has always viewed the budget as an “important planning and management” tool, which emanates out of a vision for development of self, community, organisation or country and clearly sets out goals.
He said: “It therefore, necessarily implies that, without a vision, any budget prepared leads that individual or community or organisation or country along a path to anywhere and more often than not, to nowhere.
“A quick glance around the City of Georgetown, for which Mayor Green and Councillors have responsibility, could only lead us to deduce that this Council has no plans for improving the conditions under which the citizen of Georgetown live and the aesthetics of the city.”
Whittaker said it is clear that several inadequacies continue to be evidenced in City Hall’s undertakings.

(By Vanessa Narine)

extracted from the Guyanachronicle