– criticises Opposition Leader’s irresponsible VAT statements

FINANCE Minister Dr. Ashni Singh, during his presentation to wrap up the debate on the $220B national budget for this year, criticised comments made by Leader of the Opposition, David Granger, that the Government had  failed to implement measures to reduce the Valued Added Tax (VAT.)The Finance Minister said that the Opposition Leader and his party were maintaining their tradition of being irresponsible by giving citizens the impression that this unrealistic expectation can be delivered without causing grave financial burden to the country.
Granger, who spoke before Minister Singh during the final session of the Budget debates, said Guyana was bleeding because of failure on the part of the Government to put measures in place such as laws and the reduction of VAT from 16 to 10 percent.
However, during his presentation, Minister Singh said that such comments not only continue to show the Opposition’s recklessness, but their ruse in continuing to mislead the nation.
“As responsible leaders, we have an obligation to not say to our people you must expect wages to be doubled next year, you must expect old age pensions to be enough to live on, you must expect the treasury to provide for your every need,” the Finance Minister argued.
Dr Singh noted that the state has its responsibility, but a responsible leader must also ensure that he does not create in the minds of his people the expectation that the state will solve all their problems.
“The truth is the citizen has a great individual responsibility for his own future, and any leader anywhere in the world who says to the public employee your wages should be doubled and that is what is reasonable, frankly speaking is creating an unreasonable expectation, creating misleading expectation,” he said.
Dr Singh pointed out that it is easy for the Opposition Leader to create this unrealistic expectation in the minds of people because he does not have the obligation to deliver on that unrealistic expectation.
The Finance Minister said such careless policy of doubling wages and pensions and cutting VAT would lead to bankruptcy, and the PPP/C government will never bankrupt Guyana for political gains.
“…. we will never sacrifice the solvency and prosperity of the country at the altar of political expediency,” he declared.
“This PPP/C party government will always have the interest of the people of Guyana at heart, their interest today, tomorrow and one generation from today,” he said.
He added that the PPP/C government has more than doubled the income tax threshold in less than 10 years and reduced the income tax rate from 33.3 to 30 percent, reduce the corporate tax rate from 35 and 45 to 30 and 40 percent, “so let there be no mistake about our faithfulness to the interest of the people of Guyana,” the Finance Minister told the National Assembly.
Minister Singh noted that Budget 2014 represents the latest installment of responsible policy of the PPP/C government. He said the Government approached the debates on the estimate in good faith, and will subject the estimates to the ultimate scrutiny, but trust that once this would have been done, that the Opposition would see merits in the proposals contained in the estimates for 2014 and vote resoundingly in favour.
Deliberation and consideration of Budget 2014 estimates began Wednesday.
On March 24, the Finance Minister presented the 2014 budget under the theme ‘A better Guyana for all Guyanese’, which contained several measures for the betterment of Guyanese. Among these are $6B to turn around the sugar industry’s fortunes, $500M to boost rice industry’s competitiveness, $200M for Agriculture diversification, $1B for Rural Enterprise Development,$800M to develop a Tourism & Hospitality Institute,$100M for dredging Port Georgetown, $3.7B for GPL’s capital expenditure support, $3.2B to subsidise Linden electricity, $1B for Hinterland Road development, $1B for a countrywide Clean Up Campaign, $10,000 cash grant for every child in the public school system, and 50% increase in electricity tariff assistance for pensioners along with a five percent increase in their pension.

(GINA)