-Dr Singh underscores PPP/C government’s commitment to Guyanese despite challenges

THE Opposition’s history of shooting down Guyana’s development has been put on blast by Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance and Public Service, Dr Ashni Singh, who has firmly said that this current government has never shied away from challenges.

During an interaction with residents of Leonora and neighbouring communities at State House in Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), the minister urged Guyanese to compare the track records of the Opposition and the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C).

According to him, his party has worked assiduously to propel the nation’s social and economic growth.

With General and Regional Elections slated for next year, the minister used the opportunity to caution Guyanese about the politicians who are attempting to reinvent themselves, despite their history in office.

After explaining the democratic model of governance and the strong responsibility which lies on the shoulders of the electorate, Dr Singh asked: “So, what did the APNU+AFC government do in office?”

Before he could respond, some residents shouting at the top of their lungs, began listing the struggles that they endured and the failed promises of the previous coalition administration.

Regarding some of the struggles that Guyanese faced, the minister referenced the scrapping of the cash grant for school children initiative by the previous APNU+AFC government.

Dr Singh stated: “Look at the children going to school. We left government in 2015 with a cash grant in place. Every single child going to school was entitled to a cash grant that their parents would collect. We left that. There was no oil. There was no debate about oil. We were already paying a cash grant to the children. APNU comes into government, they didn’t increase the cash grant, they didn’t leave it at the same level [but] they took it away.”

Notably, the PPP/C administration had promised to improve the support of parents and homes to ensure that children are educated in its manifesto.

It is within this light that the ‘Because We Care’ cash grant was reintroduced.

This year, parents received $40,000 along with the $5,000 uniform allowance, placing over $9 billion into their pockets.

Dr Singh also noted that it was under this current administration that the one-month tax-free bonus for the joint services was restored.

Among other industries that faced a brutal beating under the previous government, was the sugar industry.

Although the PPP/C government recognised that the sugar industry was facing some challenges, Dr Singh said that this did not stop them from striving to fix it.

“We were grappling with the challenges of the sugar industry. We recognised that the industry had challenges and we were working diligently to fix those challenges and being in government is not going to be an easy road. You will have some issues that will be challenging, that will test you as a government. You can’t shy away from those problems.

“We have never shied away,” the minister said.

In 2017, the former coalition government had announced the closure of several sugar estates across the country, leaving thousands of persons without jobs or sources of income. The move saw four sugar estates being closed and over 7,000 sugar workers losing their jobs.

The Rose Hall Estate, prior to its closure, was “home” to some 2,500 sugar workers, but 1,181 of those were retrenched. The remaining workers from the Rose Hall Estate were transferred to Blairmont Estate over in West Coast Berbice and Albion Estate on the Corentyne.