-Dr. Jagdeo promises transformative support for Region Nine in next PPP/C term

SHOULD the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) be re-elected this September, families in Region Nine can expect even more support aimed at improving their lives and strengthening their communities.

That was the message the party’s General Secretary and Guyana’s Vice-President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo took to Lethem on Sunday, where he addressed a large crowd of supporters gathered to hear what the party has planned for the next five years.

“We’re not finished yet,” Dr. Jagdeo told the mammoth crowd. “We want to do more for families, more for young people, more for farmers, more for every Amerindian village.”

During his speech, he outlined several new plans that the PPP/C would roll out if voted back into office.

These include: Zero-interest loans for people starting small or medium-sized businesses, grants to help women and young people start small projects, assistance for families looking to build or upgrade their homes, more cash grants to help with daily expenses, new food processing factories to support local agriculture, equipment, fertiliser, and planting materials for farmers, and scholarships for anyone who wants to study or learn a skill.

Dr. Jagdeo promised that the PPP/C will do even more for citizens.

“We will make sure that your villages; the farmers get full support,” he said. “We will build factory shelves so you can process more of your food. We’ll make sure more equipment, fertiliser, pesticides, planting material for the farmers so that people can have a better life. In terms of education, we want everyone to study; all of our young people to have the best quality education in the world without leaving their villages.”

Importantly, Dr. Jagdeo said the government will improve Internet access across the region, so that young people don’t have to leave their villages to get a good education.

“We now have to improve connectivity; Wi Fi, so that they can do Online courses right in their villages. And anyone who wants a scholarship will get a scholarship in the next term; any young person not only to do academic subjects, but to train them in a lot of skills that they need to earn more in your villages,” he said, adding:

“We’re going to support the children more so that they, too, can do well. We’re going to take away more of the burden of funding education from the families.”
Dr. Jagdeo also reminded residents that these promises aren’t just talk. Over the past few years, he said, the PPP/C has already delivered on many of its previous commitments, despite taking office during a national crisis.

“When we came in, the country was basically shut down, but we still reversed all the taxes they put in, and didn’t add a single new one,” he noted.

So far, government initiatives have delivered: $14 billion to hinterland and Amerindian communities through the Low- Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), $11 billion via the Amerindian Development Fund, 36,000 solar panels to homes across the interior, jobs for over 5,000 people through the Community Service Officers (CSO) initiative and part-time work programmes.

The VP added that the PPP/C has always stood with Amerindian communities not just during elections, but when things were tough.

“Long before we were in government, we were here fighting side-by-side with you. Not every party can say that,” he told the crowd, pointing to the hardships faced under past administrations.

The PPP/C is expected to release its full M
manifesto today, outlining even more policies and plans to take Guyana forward ahead of the September 1 General and Regional Elections.