Dr Irfan Ali - PPP/ C Presidential Canditate
An excerpt of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) manifesto – under the theme ‘A Plan for Prosperity’ – was released during a press conference, last Friday (November 29, 2019). And PPP/C presidential candidate, Irfaan Ali, stressed that it outlines a plan that is holistic, systematic, targeted, results-oriented, people-centered and people driven.
“These are important elements of our plan to take Guyana forward,” he said during the press conference. He explained that the release of the manifesto except brings clarity in a political environment, where the APNU+AFC Coalition has demonstrated a lack of vision for Guyana. According to him, while the process of completing the final manifesto is still ongoing, the excerpt of the manifesto details specific targets that are measurable – ones that the PPP/C will be accountable for.
“There are other ideas we are studying because we are not just putting down ideas – we are looking at whether it is viable and implementable…the plan geared to bring prosperity to our people – sustainable prosperity so that future generations will also benefit,” he said.
Ali added, “…this is a manifesto for every single Guyanese. This is a platform to create a national strategy to enhance the lives of every single Guyanese….after March 2, the PPP/C government will and must govern in the interest of all Guyanese.” Expounding on the PPP/C campaign slogan – ‘Stronger Together for a Better Guyana’ – the PPP/C presidential candidate noted that this denotes stronger economy, communities, political systems, social justice, integration, involvement, ownership, coming together of ideas, mindset, vision and people. “All of this will help is to achieve a better Guyana for all Guyanese,” he said.
On that note, Ali stressed that the excerpt of the PPP/C manifesto, which is timebound, marries best practices with practicality geared to deliver:
• A strong economy that will create jobs, diversify the base of economy, re-energize the productive sector, enhance global competitiveness, transform of infrastructure, and more; • Strong healthcare, where international quality healthcare will be available to the Guyanese people, while advancing a focus on positioning the healthcare sector to be export-oriented so that it can bring in revenue.
• Strong education delivery where Guyana’s educational platform will be advanced to a position where it is second to none in the Region, while there is strong focus on Information Communication and Technology (ICT);
• A strong productive sector that will see the re-tooling the productive sector and incentives to do this; budget support for critical infrastructure; reversal all the hardships imposed by Coalition that resulted in the shrinking of the sector and the loss of jobs; diversification; transparency in resource allocation from miners to forestry operators; stable and clear investment framework; focus on sustainable growth of these sectors; support for training and development as well as for technological advancement; specific initiatives for sugar and rice; public-private collaboration that stands transparency tests.
IMPLEMENTABLE
Ali underscored the fact that the PPP/C plan is implementable. He said, “It is not false promises, false hope. It is realistic and will bring real change, real opportunity for every single Guyanese…the plan is based on number of principles – equity; fairness; pro-poor approach to growth and development, which is essential if we are to address inequality; openness and transparency; and accountability. “….every single idea is implementable, has been costed and will be implemented… these policies were analysed. We have satisfied ourselves that they are implementable; that within the budgetary framework of our country they are implementable.”The PPP/C presidential candidate added, “…we have to see transformation not only at the macro-level, but also at the community level, including when it comes to crime and security….the focus on sustainable communities include a focus on issues ranging from lower costs to home, to building capacity in all areas…communities in hinterland areas have specific needs and there are targeted measures to respond to those.
“…all of what we will do will be grounded in a commitment to rule of law, commitment to the Constitution of Guyana. We cannot talk about bridging gaps if there is no respect for the Constitution.” On questions about cost, the PPP/C presidential candidate noted that the plans in the manifesto have all been costed. “These were costed. These were analyzed within an economic, budget and financial framework…the plans are realistic,” he said, adding that under a PPP/C government all expenditures will reflect the focus of the Party.
That said, Ali said, “I want to make an appeal, as the People’s Progressive Party Civic presidential candidate, especially to those who may not have historically supported us, the ones who may not have supported us in the last elections to at least give us an opportunity to be heard, to at least give us an opportunity through this document to reach into your hearts, to reach into your homes and so that you can analyse the plans we have, so that you can make a more conscious decision, so that you can make a more informed decision, so that you can make a decision that you’ll be proud of nationally.”
The PPP/C presidential candidate stressed that the PPP/C believes that it has a moral responsibility to the Guyanese people. “We hold dearly the promises we make in our manifesto. The manifesto is a contract we have with the population and we must be able to fulfill the contractual obligation in the manifesto, as we seek the votes of the Guyanese people… whether you supported us or not, we want to fulfill the aspirations of every single Guyanese and that is what we are committing to you in this document,” Ali declared.
