…Ministers Harmon, Ally make light of PPP no-confidence motion

AS the budget debate continued on Thursday, government ministers maintained that the coalition is strong and committed to defeat the No Confidence motion tabled in the National Assembly by the Opposition People’s Progressive Party.
To this end, Minister of Social Protection Amna Ally told the National Assembly on Thursday afternoon that the government has a “clear vision” as she noted that in the 2019 budget, the administration is prioritising investments that will rebuild the critical, physical, and

social infrastructure in the country.

“Budget 2019 is our attempt to achieve the greatest possibilities for the good of the country,” she said as she noted that it is one for the people. In her usual confident mode, Ally responded to Opposition MP Nigel Dharamlall who said earlier in the debate that the budget will be the last of the current government. “I wish to let the honourable member know that this Coalition government stands on firm ground,” she said, as she noted that the foundation is embedded in its achievements and projections.

Ally told parliamentarians that the electorate is happy since they have begun to enjoy the “good life” and that they look forward to even “better days” under the APNU+AFC administration. As she highlighted the programmes under the Ministry of Social Protection, she said that many indigenous communities across the country have benefitted from the agency’s programmes. ”We will continue to traverse the road of development because we believe in being a government for all the people and not a few cronies,” she said.

As she made her case, Ally said the government’s Sustainable Livelihood and Entrepreneurial Development (SLED) programme and other similar projects will continue to provide opportunities for funding for targeted beneficiaries for various business ventures across the country.

Meanwhile, Minister of State Joseph Harmon, during his presentation, said that there appears an “underlying current” in the Opposition in which that side of the National Assembly is of the opinion that the government is afraid of its no-confidence motion. He told the National Assembly that “32- could never be more than 33” as he noted that all that is being championed by the Opposition is aimed at “spoiling people Christmas.” He mentioned the “Grinch” during his descriptive sentence.

He said that the Opposition knows its motion will be defeated since he noted that in the final analysis, it is the government who has the majority. During his clarification mode, the Minister of State made reference to a $10,000 cash grant being peddled by the Opposition in its messages to the population ever since the government changed in 2015. It was reported in July 2015 that then Minister of Governance, Raphael Trotman, announced that APNU+AFC government discontinued the PPP administration’s $10,000 school grant initiative. He said the move was made on the grounds that the initiative was “fiscally unsustainable”.
Minister Harmon said on Thursday that even before the new government assumed office in May 2015, the PPP administration had ceased the programme. “ So this question about bringing back cash-grant; what are you asking for, bring back something that you stopped yourself ?” Harmon asked.

He said that a call for the return of the grant is all the Opposition has in mind, in the face of “a stellar performance “by the Education Ministry under the current administration. Harmon also debunked statements made by former Minister of Amerindian Affairs , Pauline Sukhai , whom he noted mentioned, during her presentation, that the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs is not receiving government’s support.

He said in the same breath, she bemoaned the fact that there are two ministers and several advisers at the ministry. “Don’t make these noise and try to sound good, and then you leave,” he said as he noted that the two ministers, Sydney Allicock and Valerie Garrido-Lowe, are not “bogus” and they do not present “bogus titles” to village leaders, as he noted that he has seen such documents.
Harmon said that budget 2019 has the Opposition “disheveled“ He said opposition MPs are firing “scatter shots” at the budget during their presentations, as he posited that the government’s 2019 financial plan “is so good “that the Opposition is searching for faults. The Minister of State told parliamentarians of the government’s Green State Development Strategy (GSDS), which he noted is significant to the administration’s approach to governance.