Budget presentation
Catherine Hughes
January 27, 2023
Mr. Speaker ,
Once again I’m here to address this honourable house on another budget – this time our 2023 national budget-“Improving lives today, building prosperity for tomorrow.”
Let me start by recognizing that the preparation of any national budget, especially one of this size is no easy task. I recognize the long hours of work undertaken by the staff of the Ministry of Finance, Minister Ashni Singh and most importantly the families of staff members who would have endured many hours of their loved ones working overtime to fashion budget 2023. To all I say thank you.
As I stand here today to address this august house in my “British accent” as as been claimed by one of the members on the other side, one would think that my immediate response would be to just laugh in the face of such pettiness at this critical juncture in our history, but I can’t because it hurts me to think that in this day and age we are still quibbling over a distraction so as not to address the ‘real’ issues.
One might also assume that I do not appreciate the efforts that have been made to put together a budget that, maybe for the first time in our history, has behind it the resources to provide for our people in ways that we could never think of before. I do appreciate the effort, woeful though it is, but my overriding response is a deep disappointment that this opportunity to really give our country and our people what they have waited for, for so long, is an opportunity lost.
I cannot but weep for my people, the people of Guyana, who had hoped that they would see in this budget a true understanding of the role of any government: the need to put their people first; to see that the benefits gained from the oil boom could create real time transformation in people’s lives. I had earnestly hoped that this budget would showcase a change of thinking on the part of the PPP/C, that they would have seen what could be done with the resources we now have available and that they would have had the moral inclination to do so. Alas, it was to no avail.
In addition to the lack of understanding of the needs of the Guyanese populace that has been highlighted in this budget presentation is the willingness to defend its inadequacies with a spate of inaccuracies and in some cases outright lies that are mind boggling, to say the least.
Our aim as the elected representatives of our people is to ensure that we provide the means for every last one of them to live full lives, have access to quality healthcare, education, the means to earn a living wage, provide for them a dignified old age and to use the country’s resources towards that purpose. So on behalf of my people, the people of Guyana, the questions I must ask and try to answer are:
- How does this budget contribute to better lives for our people?
- How does it improve education and healthcare?
- How does it allow for our people to have the resources to live comfortably?
- How does it add dignity to the lives of our elderly?
Mr. Speaker, this budget has the responsibility to articulate a vision for where our dear Guyana is heading – what will this country look like in 5 years, ten years and to engender hope in these difficult times of rising cost of living. Mr. Speaker a good budget must give each citizen a sense of fairness, optimism- that we will each get a piece of the pie.
A real vision cannot be found amongst the collection of large infrastructure projects thrown together.
Mr. Speaker there are few truths which I hope that we can all agree on in this room regardless of the hostilities, the vitriol, lack of respect and downright verbal abuse hurled especially to us women which is shared in this house.
The first truth is that regardless of which side of this house we sit – any government in office in Guyana from now on will have money to spend on the medium and long term development of Guyana. The gods – have given us that gift and we are thankful!
The question is how we prioritize the welfare of all our citizens- our children, our pensioners, those with special needs and how this budget treats these groups must be the number one consideration.
Mr. Speaker this is the “ largest budget “yet this budget highlights that “Largest” doesn’t necessarily mean better spending and better results. The quality and quantity of the spending must be examined.
Mr. Speaker this budget is set at $781.9 billion. The first to benefit from $31.3 billion from the sale of carbon credits alongside the transfer of $208.9 billion from the national resource fund. Real GDP grew by 25,1% and the US dollar has been relatively stable over the last two years. All good Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker as I’m fair in my assessment of the positive nature of these indicators I want to give credit where it is due …a failing highlighted during these budget debates.
Mr. Speaker – regardless of how you cut it our nation would be in a totally different place today had the APNUAFC coalition not pushed the development of our oil and gas industry as an good government would have been expected to do. What is sad is the Minister’s constant tirade that he collected a damaged economy in 2020.
Minister Ashni Singh page 1 – “since assuming office, our government set about the task of repairing the deep and lasting damage caused by five years of misrule and mismanagement”
Mr. Speaker, nothing could be further from the truth. The Minister’s talk of “Intellectual dishonesty” aptly describes him. For the period he describes here is the IMF’s assessment!
IMF Press Release NO 19/332 September 17, 2019
Mr. Speaker the shouts that nothing was done were resounding! But here are the facts on the emergence of Guyana’s oil and gas industry which we so carefully chartered so all Guyana could reap the benefits today reflected in this massive budget.
The Road to First Oil 2015-2019…what we achieved in 4 short years when the international start up time is usually 9 years and with limitations on spending after 2018!
– Strengthened GGMC, GRA, EPA
– Signed New Agreement in 2016
– SignedProduction Licence In 2017
– Review of all laws and regulations relating to Oil and Gas
– Established EITI – 2017
-Established the department of energy
-held the first ever oil and gas international conference GIPEX in Feb 2018 – 650 persons participated in GIPEX 2018, with 450 paying delegates and the remainder were government officials and diplomats, international public servants and special interest parties. This continues as it should today-even in the same month!
Bilateral Partnerships/MoUs Entered into For Training and Support With: – World Bank, – IDB, – IMF, Chatham House Royal Instutute, Oxford University, Government of Trinidad & Tobago, Government of Mexico, Commonwealth Secretariat
– Govt of Uganda’s and Norway’s Petroleum Directorate.
The US Government’s Energy Governance Capacity Initiative (EGCI) that supported us in oil spill resilience and response.
Tons and tons of work was done Mr. Speaker by hard working committed Guyanese in the various Ministries and Agencies simultaneously – Natural Resources, Finance, Public Infrastructure, Business, Foreign Affairs, GGMC, GRA, EPA, MARAD, GDF…
Give them some Credit where it is due Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker. I Note that in 2016 – our inflation rate was 1.4%, 2017 – 1.5%, 2018 1.6% and 2019 – 0.1 % by the same government who supposedly mismanaged the economy. Today its a whopping 7.2% and rising as increases in food costs highlights.
Prudent management of the inflation rate – Mr. Speaker?
Mr. Speaker have a look at appendix 6 in the budget presentation speech and note the rapid increase in the total public and publicly guaranteed debt. We went back to 2018 when it was $1.79 B, $ 1.75B in 2019…it went up to $ 2.5B in 2020 and $ 3.1 B in 2021, $ 3.5B, $3.6 and $4.4B expected this year!
Mr. Speaker the Minister states on page 26 “ since returning to office we have invested over $10 B in plant and equipment” This year sugar gets over $ 4 billion. Yet Mr. Speaker when the coalition so called mismanaged the industry we produced in 2019 – 92,282 tonnes and in 2022 when under the excellent management of Mr. Singh and the PPPC it barely could produce 47,287 tonnes. This doesn’t make a lot of business sense Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker I want to move to those measures and I remind us of the questions I asked earlier.
- How does this budget contribute to better lives for our people?
- How does it allow for our people to have the resources to live comfortably?
- How does it add dignity to the lives of our elderly
I don’t have to repeat the pain our citizens are experiencing as they grapple with the out of control ever increasing cost of living and a close to stagnant wage.
We have heard the present cost of items in that basic basket of goods. Are we really saying the best this oil rich Guyana, one of the fastest growing economies in the world is increase pensions by 5,000 dollars. Mr. Speaker…this packet of 18 depends costs $ 4,000. You have given our pensioners a packet of 18 depends and maybe with the change, one bottle of ensure. Minister Ashni Singh you and this PPP government have given the pensioners nothing really. We on this side had recommended at least $50,000
Our persons with special needs…whom the Minister of Education boasts we are going to do so much more which is great – get an increase from $12,000 to $14,000 .
Really Mr. Speaker that’s two drops for anyone with a physical disability who must travel by taxi, assuming you live in Georgetown of course. Anywhere on the east bank close to Herstelling is $2,000 or $ 2,500 depending on time of day.
Education
Mr. Speaker There has been much debate about the future of education at the world level and it would be remiss of me not to recognise the importance of this sector to our national development thrust. Sadly, we have failed to see the big picture. It was our hope that free tuition at the University of Guyana would have finally been given the green light in this budget, and we still trust that this will be done because this is where our oil monies will have the biggest impact.
Mr. Speaker we have been told that free education will come before 2025. But with an over $700 billion plus budget. Couldn’t we give the students a break now. Say a 50% reduction, or a 25% rebate /subsidy on those fees. Mr. Speaker nothing!!!!!
How can justify putting over 4 billion into sports and little over three billion to the University of Guyana the premier institution we expect to provide the qualified professionals we so desperately need to fill the skills gap and local content requirements that currently exists. 5 of the 8 faculties at UG are science based with the faculty of social sciences housing 12 different disciplines. How do you justify the Goal scholarship programme getting about half of UG’s budget with no physical infrastructure to manage the high expectations we and the private sector have of UG. Does this make logical sense?
Mr. Speaker Politics should never intrude on our educational capability.
Mr. Speaker, The Learning Channel, quite possibly is the most important mass education tool for primary and secondary education and must be commended. But this entity has been unable to reach its full potential because it continues to be constrained by nepotism and limited thinking. Why should someone who is related to the sitting education minister be running that facility with no broadcast or education background. These are the issues that continue to plague us and these are the issues that have to be addressed.
We could have used the opportunity of these debates to look for solutions.
Mr. Speaker how is it possible that the APNU+AFC coalition at a time when there were no oil revenues was able to make permanent salary increase in the minimum wage of teachers, nurses, doctors, members of the defense services, police and security forces.
In 2015 it moved from $39,570 to $50,000 a 26% increase, 10% in 2016, from 55,000 to 60,000 – 20%, …over the four years minimum wage increased from 39,570 to 70,000 by 2019..77% …..and in this booming oil economy a nothing extra on permanent salaries.
Yes Mr. Speaker I’m making an important distinction. An increase on their salary, something extra every month…not a “one off grant” when the government feels like giving you something.
I want Guyanese to understand that if you were receiving the minimum wage in 2015 of $39,570 and by 2019 you were getting 70,000 that means you were getting an extra 30,430 more every month before tax thanks to the coalition. In a year you would have received more than $365,000 dollar looks roughly speaking. Now do you see how small “The $ 35,000 we care grant looks! Guyanese you deserve more you deserve better.
We recommended taking the minimum wage to $100,000. Don’t the poorest of Guyanese with rent or a mortgage, a family most likely, electricity, food, TP deserve at least that.
Mr. Speaker of great concern which is reflected is this 2023 budget is this Government’s propensity to provide cash grants instead in increasing wages and salary levels.
Mr. Speaker let me state clearly so there is no misunderstanding. We on this side of the house are happy when government allocates extra revenues from the national coffers as cash grant to the citizens of Guyana but we insist that increases be made to wages and salaries.
Mr. Speaker you see the fundamental problems with the cash grants is that they are unpredictable handouts that cannot be taken to any bank. Cash grants must be the “top up” disbursed in a fair and equitable manner with the relevant system in place to avoid manipulation and corruption.
Mr. Speaker this budget focuses overwhelmingly on the big projects-that allow the established big business to partake and compete. There is very little to address our historic inequalities and help expand the base.
Mr. Speaker ensuring the economic and social advancement of all our citizens, while keeping the economy productive, stimulating new sectors for economic development, ensuring sustainable development and diversification even in this new oil and gas economy is a must.
Mr. Speaker we must think ahead and plan to manage the shocks in oil prices that will come as surely as day follows night and our levels of borrowing are therefore a concern. We must ensure that borrowing is not excessive.
Mr. Speaker all of this must be driven by data – the long tern plans for economic development must be driven by data and as stakeholders in Guyana’s development – all of us – those in this house, the persons we represent, the private sector , small businesses, civil society, everyone must to able to review and interrogate this data and contribute to the development of this country as article 13 instructs us to develop an inclusive society.
Mr. Speaker on the Tourism development front – what is the data that supports the decision to place a much anticipated and long overdue hospitality training school 6 hours drive time away from the geographical area our new hotels will be found. Surely the answer provided by the Minister “that why not an urban area” is a totally unacceptable answer. This does not consider the new hotelier who now must arrange residential accommodation for the staff he hoped he could schedule to attend as part of his inhouse on the job training programme.
This is the same kind of thinking that determined the best place to put a synthetic track was in a community where the highest level of athletes cannot be found and it take two buses to reach the location one way.
Mr. Speaker we note that several key sectors were doing better prior to the introduction of oil. Gold is a classic example of this where in 2019 earnings were $876.6 Million but by 2022 it had fallen to 830 Million – despite the massive relief granted to the gold industry declarations are less.
Mr. Speaker, sadly these budget debates were plagued deliberate gross inaccuracies. So many on the Government side seemed totally unfamiliar with the truth.
We heard from the junior finance Minister, the Minister of Agriculture and others speak of the APNUAFC bankrupting the Guyana Forestry Commission. Mr. Speaker again nothing could be further from the truth and they know that.
The report on the forensic audit and review of the Guyana Forestry Commission dated December 31, 2015 by Anand Goolsarran on page 8 informs us of a different position and I quote:
Extracts from the Audit of the Guyana Forestry Commission by Anand Goolsarran
Transfers to other State agencies
“1:33 During the period 2006 to 2010, the Commission made payments to other State agencies totaling $1.284 billion out of its retained earnings (accumulated profits), based on Cabinet decisions. Of this amount, two payments totalling $600 million were made to the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Ltd. to meet the 2007 Cricket World Cup expenditure and to assist in the cost of construction of the Marriott Hotel. Another amount of $600 million was transferred to the Governor of the Bank of Guyana as the liquidator of the Colonial Life Insurance Company Investments.”
“Granting of loans
1:35 Section 22 (1) (a) of the Act prohibits the Commission from making any loan or grant
except for the purpose of carrying on the functions of the Commission. Despite this, in
September 2014, Cabinet approved of the Commission granting a loan of US$600,000 .to the Iwokrama International Centre.”
Bank balances
“1:36 The Commission’s main operating bank account was overdrawn by $90.245 million as at 31 May 2015. The interest rate on the overdraft was 6.5%. For May 2015, the overdraft interest was $489,204.”
We are aware that this Government conducted an audit post 2020 but being adverse to transparency has not shared the audit.
Mr. Speaker then we had the Honourable I should say – Minister Suzanne Rodrigues stand here and pontificate about the Global Witness Report. She stressed the C word but never once informed this house that as reported in Forbes magazine – Global Witness themselves withdrew their report on Guyana’s oil sector. Global Witness also released a statement.
“Yet upon closer examination, the allegations don’t really stand up. Global Witness states repeatedly and unequivocally that it found no evidence of any wrongdoing by ExxonMobil nor Guyana’s
government ministers. …. In the end, just a few hours of analysis reveals the Global Witness report for what it is: An ideologically-motivated attack piece aimed at some of the biggest players in the oil and gas industry. Which, given the group’s history, comes as no surprise at all.
Mr. Speaker this was one of the Mercury contracted deliverables Global Witness was paid to produce to discredit the coalition govt. Money well spent as the VP has stated. Noting to do with truth.
ICT
Mr. Speaker I would like to now look at the area for which I was responsible when I served as Minister of Public Telecommunications. Mr. Speaker I listened in horror as the Minister of Amerindian affairs came to this house, stood at the podium and uttered a battery of untruths. It was disingenuous at least, and downright dishonest at worst to suggest that nothing was done in this sector under the last administration.
(Not delivered entirely -check delivery
We passed the telecommunications and PUC acts in 2016.
Under NDMA We operationalized our digital fibre optic cable network which was languishing since 2012 under the PPP. We connected government ministries and agencies, provided teleconferencing equipment in all of them
The safe city programme which thankfully you have continued and plan to expand
Established the centre of excellence with the govt of India
Discussed a single ICT space across south America and the Caribbean. Discussed with Caricom and the CTU crafting and implementing a single ICT space across the Caribbean and lobbied for the elimination of roaming charges…where is this imitative Mr. Speaker
Where is the national programme for analogue to digital conversion TV? Where is the draft ICT strategy policy we left in the works?
We granted permission to E networks and Exxon to land subsea fibre optic cables but where are the other telecommunication investors.
Mr. Speaker we trained over 4,000 over the 5 years under our industry and innovation programme in microbits, coding, website and graphic design, girls in ICT, arranged internships with local companies, support Stem Guyana and provided a home for them, robotic kits for groups and much more.
Customs & vat exemptions on phones and vehicles – PLWD
Trained 215 from girls under the 6 month code camp with UG
Web accessibility training, hackathons, developed apps
Distributed over 4,000 Laptops- one laptop per teacher
Signed an MOU with GTT regarding liberalization.)
Don’t tell us Minister Sukhai that we did nothing. You can tell me you’ve surpassed what we did next time!
Mr. Speaker we came into office full of hope with regards to the potential a fibre optic cable supposedly installed by the PPC could have on improved connectivity especially in our hinterland interior communities. $13 billion dollars later there was nothing to show from Linden to Lethem from a project run by the son of a former President!
Not to forget the one laptop per person scam….more than $119 million wasted, more than 5,000 laptops not accounted for…
I had cause to visit several interior locations over the last few months, from Paramakatoi in Region 8 to Aranaputa in Region 9 and Phillipi in Region 7. The complaint is always the same. The internet is inadequate. The schools do not have the necessary internet capacity. The teachers have to use their own money to purchase internet for the school. In Paramakatoi the cost for purchasing internet time was $2500 for less than 15 minutes every time you need to go online.
The internet hubs that were installed under my tenure have not been maintained, necessary upgrades were not completed and most are functioning poorly or not operational at all. The teachers in those communities also do their training online through CPCE so how can we expect our people to be the beneficiaries when every time a new government comes in they try to denigrate what was done previously to score cheap political points.
Rather than build on what was there before it was deliberately allowed it to fall into disrepair and so that blame could be thrown my way.
So where are we in the sector and what needs to be done immediately to ensure it can reach its full potential.
Mr. Speaker I recall distinctly the junior Minister with responsibility for finance complaining about The ICT access for hinterland poor and Remote communities project which was “languishing” under the coalition. Again intellectual dishonesty.
The Former Minister of Finance and I signed the project document and selected UNDP as the managing partner. We worked with UNDP resident representative Kadisha Musa in implementing the ICT needs assessment and her replacement Mikiko Tanaka signed the project document funded by the GRIF to a tune of 17 Million US.
By the time we left we had connected several hinterland communities and expected that by now the project would have been completed. Slow progress currently.
Mr. Speaker I have raised these issues to highlight for this nation how mendacious representatives of this government are.
But Mr. speaker if there is a brighter side it is that we – the collective in this room have an opportunity to do things differently. An eye for an eye will make us all blind.
Regardless of what has happened in the past, this is our wakeup call. Will we keep referring to things that happened twenty years ago to justify the mistakes we continue to make. Mr. Speaker it is very difficult to get anywhere if your vision is in the rear view mirror.
My presentation today is not an indictment so much as it is an effort to search for common ground, to let us all understand how we are failing the people of our country by this constant incivility that is an ego trip more than it is a means of finding solutions that will have lasting value.
We have got to be bigger than this and we got to talk about the elephant in the room. We have allowed race and politics to divide us to our own detriment and if we don’t see that the world is watching on and laughing as our resources are depleted for the benefit of others, then these days of debates will be an exercise in futility; another wasted opportunity.
Surely our ability to understand history must be used to correct our future – the future of our country, the future of our children. The chant of rigged elections has become a rallying cry to perpetuate the stereotype that one ‘ethnicity’ is responsible for the damage that has been done to our electoral process. We all know the lie in this and have got to stop the constant repetition of this inaccuracy if we are to build a more cohesive nation. We know deep down that the Guyana Elections Commission in whom we all placed our faith in disappointed us in catastrophic terms, remains unwilling to examine and correct its administrative flaws and ensure that the citizens of this country have confidence in its ability to deliver free and fair elections.
The myriad of maladministration unearthed in the recount process and signed off to by representative from all the contenting parties present is testimony to this.
We have all made mistakes in the past and we understand the challenges that face any government in searching for lasting solutions, so I am not here to put down the efforts to craft a budget, but to look critically at some of its deficiencies which I have highlighted in the hope that they will be addressed.
In closing I recognize that we can still consider the many good suggestions and recommendation proffered over these last five day and include in a revised more inclusive budget.
We boast that Guyana will be the next Singapore. I leave you with a quote from Lee Kwan Yew
“A nation is great not by its size alone. It is the will, the cohesion, the stamina, the discipline of its people and the quality of their leaders which ensure it an honourable place in history.”
Thank you Mr. Speaker
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