THE PPP/C Administration, as a matter of policy, has always strived to ensure the inclusion of all Guyanese in its development agenda and continuous stakeholder engagements and consultations are testimony to this. Against this backdrop, Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and Finance Ministers Dr. Ashni Singh and Juan Edghill yesterday met with the residents of Region 10 at the LENS building in Linden to bring them up-to-date with the provisions of the 2013 national budget.
Residents came out in their numbers and were eager to hear from the government officials. During this engagement, the overall response to budget 2013 was overwhelmingly positive, as residents expressed the view that the budget is indeed a progressive one.
Striking the balance
Addressing the residents, Minister Singh explained that each citizen manages a budget of his or her own, and everyday he or she is confronted with challenges in terms of meeting immediate needs and making long-term investments.
Similarly, the government must be able to strike that delicate balance between the country’s immediate needs and investments that will ensure future development.
The minister explained that, “just as none of you will spend all of your income and deny your children the opportunity of higher education, so must your government ensure that we do not, as a country,  consume all that we generate and fail to make long-term investments for our children.”
Budget 2013 is crafted within a framework that meets the most immediate and urgent needs of Guyana today, while at the same time catering for the investments that are critical for the long-term future of Guyana.
 
Macro-economic stability
The finance minister spoke of the prevailing global financial recession which has dealt severe blows to some of the most powerful economies in the world, including the United States. Guyana, on the other hand, has successfully managed to achieve and maintain real economic growth since 2006 with an expanding Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and a thriving private sector.
Reference was made to the massive investments by foreign companies in the bauxite and gold industry, which would not have been possible if the country’s macro-economic environment was not stable.
“These investors would not have invested hundreds of millions of dollars if they did not feel that this economy was strong and stable for the long-term. This is what we have to continue to protect and preserve, in your interest and in your children’s interest. The fact that we have been able to manage the macro-economy to create this kind of stability, is good for Guyana,” the minister stated.
Apart from striking the balance, government also has to fund its operations for the remainder of the year, including the payment of wages and salaries and investment in infrastructure (roads, schools, the airport expansion, hydropower facility among others).
 
Electricity subsidy
The issue of electricity is a very sensitive subject in the mining town of Linden, and this year, government has allocated a whopping $2.9B subsidy in this regard. Minister Singh emphasised the growing need for a more cheaper and reliable source of electricity and reaffirmed the administration’s commitment to the realisation of the Amaila Falls Hydropower project.
He explained that even if Lindeners are not paying the $60 per kilowatt that customers on the national grid are paying, they are still paying for this subsidy in an indirect way, since the $2.9B could have been invested in other developmental projects to benefit residents in the region.
The Amaila Falls project will double the country’s electricity generating capacity, generating about 160 megawatts of power, which will be able to meet the uninterrupted electricity needs of the country, particularly on the coastland.
Contrary to what is being said by the opposition that government is neglecting Linden, Minister within the Ministry of Finance, Juan Edghill, said that while $5.4B is being provided to subsidise electricity on the entire national grid, which has about 166,000 customers, Region 10 alone (Linden and Kwakwani) will benefit from a subsidy of $2.9B.
 
Budget measures
Residents were also reminded of the budget measures from which they will benefit, including the 25 percent old age pension increase that will see them taking home $12,500, and adjustments to the tax regime, which will see workers benefiting from higher take-home pay and a tax break on the interest to be paid on mortgage loans, just to name a few.
“You don’t think that, as the finance minister I would love to slash every tax in half, and double expenditure, wages and pensions…that would make me, the president and the government immensely popular, but it will also mortgage your children’s long-term future; and just as you would not bankrupt your children and leave them with a big debt, so too, we, as a responsible government cannot bankrupt your children’s future for the sake of political popularity,” Minister Singh asserted.
 
Charity vs. opportunities  
Prime Minister Hinds said that while much is being said by the opposition about the budget being empty, he reminded that the budget is not about giving charity, it is about providing the necessary opportunities so that they can enhance their own living standards.
He also updated the residents on the Linden-Lethem road, the deep water port and the Amaila Falls project.
“We are striking a balance between providing people with assistance and working to equip them so that they can fend for themselves in the long-term,” he said.
 
Projects for Region 10
Minister Edghill made mention of some of the projects which budget 2013 caters for, and this was met with loud applause from the residents. Some of these include: $60M to rebuild the One-Mile Primary School which was burnt down during the protest last year, $83.8M subvention for the Linden Technical Institute to ensure training for youths, and an additional $20M for rehabilitation of this institution, $773.7M for the Linden Hospital and a series of roads and other infrastructural projects.
Residents were also given the opportunity to ask questions, air concerns and make recommendations, all of which were noted by the visiting team.