Dear Editor,
PLEASE allow me to shed some light to educate the opposition leader, who needs to be educated as to what is in Budget 2023. I won’t make this missive long because as we all know, numeracy, literacy, and comprehension are failing Norton and some of his MPs a lot.

First, let me ask Norton to have someone qualified to write his speeches; maybe he can recall Geeta Chandan-Edmond to do this.

He needs to read when speaking to the media because he is not wise talking off of his head to the media without a written speech. Norton is so taken up with racism that he is saying growth is not development. Maybe he has grown but not developed and that’s why he says that.

Anyway, I think if members of the opposition were listening to the Dr. Ashni Singh’s Budget 2023 presentation, they would have known that it has something for everyone in it.

But maybe they were listening and cannot understand because the figures outlined in the presentation get them worried, as we all know that mathematics is a serious problem in their camp.

As mentioned by Dr. Singh, Budget 2023 is the largest budget ever in the history of this country, and it is being fully financed without no new taxes. It was also said that budget 2023 is the first budget to benefit from the sale of our carbon credits amounting to some $31.3 billion in revenue for the year 2023.

There is so much that is for the people in the 2023 budget that Norton failed to realise that former President Granger and a lot of his ministers along with advisers would be getting more in their old-age pension this year from $28,000 in 2022 to $33,000 in 2023. Isn’t that a benefit for the old-age pensioners Mr. Norton or the pensioners aren’t people?

There is a whopping $3 billion that will be given in salary adjustments and will benefit some 5,000 healthcare workers and 9,000 members of the disciplined services, effective from the January 1, 2023. Who will be benefitting Mr. Norton?

Mr. Norton fails to realise that Budget 2023 will put more money into the hands\pockets of taxpayers because the income-tax threshold has moved from $75,000 in 2022 to $85,000 in 2023. This means more spending power for the citizens of this country. Wouldn’t the people benefit here, Mr. Norton?

Simply as it looks, Norton wants us to believe that Budget 2023 has nothing for the people; this shows that the PNC has no vision because our schoolchildren will now benefit in 2023 from $35,000 under the “Because We Care Cash” initiative and another $5,000 for school uniforms.

This will ease the burden of the parents because they will be having $40,000 per child and it will trickle down into the pockets of many business owners, as the parents will go about doing school shopping. Who will be benefitting here Mr. Norton?

There is more budgeted in 2023 for the school feeding programmes for our children who are the future of this nation.

In 2023, more money will be invested in assisting those seeking public assistance, especially our single parents, etc.

Our brothers and sisters living with disabilities will benefit more from the 2023 budget. Zero excise taxes on fuel will be maintained, and so will the reduction in freight charges. An additional $5 billion is being allocated in 2023 for the cost of living measures.

We will see new health centres and hospitals with better health services in 2023. We will see in 2023 a better and stronger security sector, upgrades of stations, training of officers, a better-equipped fire service, etc.

We will see a major enhancement in the justice sector in 2023 and ICT being implemented to better the justice system.

Not forgetting our Indigenous brothers and sisters who, in 2023, will be seeing major works and enhancement being done on their roads, bridges, airstrips, and other community infrastructure.
Money was allocated to the NTC and also for their heritage celebration. Not forgetting millions was pumped into the hinterland scholarship programmes for our students.

I can stop here, but I want to tell Mr. Norton that in 2023 the housing sector will continue to boom with more house lots being given out to our people, more low and middle-income homes, more young professional homes, and a brand-new city in the making.

Mr. Norton, there will also be a brand-new vessel that will traverse the northwest. A new Demerara Harbour Bridge and many new community roads and repairs to highways, are also in the pipeline.

I can go and on, but I don’t want to confuse Mr. Norton and the PNC with figures as the way they were confused when Dr. Singh made his 2023 budget presentation.

Thank you to the PPP Government for the vision of a better tomorrow as we strive together in creating a “One Guyana”.

Yours sincerely,
Abel Seetaram