Dear Editor,
EMBATTLED U.S.-sanctioned businessman and leader of the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) political party unleashed one of the lowest of political attacks at the President about cash grants.
In a pre-recorded, scripted statement on his page, the WIN leader drew references to other countries that pay to their citizens direct cash transfers. Those countries referenced were Middle Eastern countries.
Interestingly, it would appear he knows quite a lot about those Middle Eastern countries and less or nothing at all about his own country’s fiscal management and policies implemented by the PPP/C government.
This is not surprising, because it should be noted that this individual apparently does business with a particular Middle Eastern country, which is the subject of the gold-smuggling case he has found himself in deep trouble with.
It is the very Middle Eastern country he allegedly smuggled off over $300 billion worth of gold, evaded taxes to the value of some $191 billion and is now lecturing the President and by extension the PPP government about cash grants.
Guyana under the PPP/C government has been transferring various forms of direct cash transfers and relief to Guyanese households long before crude oil and gas were discovered.
He may not be aware of this because he was busy engaged in alleged illicit trading of gold, for which he is now the subject of OFAC sanctions and having been indicted in a U.S. court of law.
Consequently, since he appears uneducated about his country’s policies and has insinuated that those large, monarch-governed Middle Eastern countries pay their citizens cash grants from their oil resources, here are some interesting facts for his edification about Guyana:
• The Mortgage Interest Relief (MIR) introduced in 2013 by the PPP/C government for home loans covering up to $30 million, is another form of direct cash transfer to citizens. The annual interest expense for a loan of up to $30 million is approximately, $904,000 or a total of $22.6 million over 25 years (the life of the loan)…for a low-income loan of up to $10 million, that is $300,000 in annual-interest expense or $7.5 million over the life of the loan for 25 years. This is a form of direct cash transfer to citizens.
• The “because we care cash grant” was introduced in 2014 by the PPP/C government, which was discontinued by the APNU government in 2015 – 2020, and reinstated by the PPP/C government in 2021. This cash grant was increased from $10,000 per child to $50,000 per child + $5,000 uniform allowance, bringing the total to $55,000 per child, annually. This is a form of direct cash transfer to citizens.
• Prior to 2015, under the PPP/C government, CXC fees were partially subsidised. In 2025, the PPP/C government raised this subsidy to full coverage for eight subjects per child. This is another form of direct transfer to citizens.
• The annual public assistance is another form of direct cash transfer to citizens.
• The first phase of introducing free tertiary education was when the government implemented a debt-write -off policy for past students of the university of Guyana. All their old debts were written off. This is a form of direct cash transfer.
• When the GOAL scholarship was introduced and now free university education, these are other forms of direct cash transfers to citizens.
• In 2025, the government introduced a new-born cash grant of $100,000 per newborn. This is another form of direct cash transfer to citizens.
• When oil prices doubled in the post-COVID period, the PPP/C government subsidised the increased cost to GPL, which is over $20 billion to keep electricity prices to the consumer constant; this is another form of direct cash transfer.
• In 2020, when the PPP/C government reversed the APNU+AFC draconian taxes, over 200 new taxes, these are essentially direct cash transfers to citizens amounting to over $90 billion annually.
• In 2020 through 2025 when the PPP/C government waived the excise tax on fuel imports from 50% to 0%—this is another form of direct cash transfer to citizens valued at over $60 billion annually.
These are just a few to mention and if we are to quantify these measures as they currently stand, these would amount to upwards of $500 billion annually, in direct cash transfers to Guyanese households.
The one-off cash grant which the PPP/C government introduced in 2024, that they promised will become an annual transfer in their campaign and 2025-2030 manifesto, be assured that it will become an annual transfer in addition to all of the above introduced under the PPP, all of which were implemented before oil revenues started flowing to the treasury.
One has to also be mindful that those funds would have to be appropriated in the budget, and the government is currently pre-occupied with 2026 budget preparation.
This is alien to the WIN leader and one can understand why he would not appreciate this because he has a long-standing, well established track record of not being in alignment with the law, not accustomed to compliance with the law and therefore is completely unaware and ignorant of the fiscal laws, fiscal management and public- accountability procedures and practices.
Or perhaps, he is more anxious for another sitting of the National Assembly, not because he cares about the people, but his own self-serving motive designed to escape the consequences of the OFAC sanction.
Guyana’s approach to direct cash transfers is robust, institutionalised, and predates oil revenues. The PPP/C government has implemented numerous measures benefitting households, amounting to over $500 billion annually. Criticisms from the WIN leader are baseless and reflect a lack of understanding of established fiscal policies and accountability procedures.
Yours respectfully,
Joel Bhagwandin