Over the next five years, government will be working to integrate contract workers into the traditional public service, according to Minister of State Joseph Harmon, who yesterday said the APNU+AFC administration inherited the system under which the workers were hired, forcing it to go with the flow for now.
“…What we have said is that we will gradually merge all of these persons who are on contract into the traditional public service. We have already entered into conversations with the Public Service Commission… additionally all those persons under age 45, we will give them an opportunity to get into the traditional public service,” Harmon said in response to questions raised by opposition parliamentarians during the consideration of the 2016 budgetary estimates for the Ministry of the Presidency.
Harmon faced hours of intense questioning that was largely focused on contract workers but the allocations were eventually passed by a government majority vote more than two hours behind schedule.
Opposition MP Jennifer Westford, who served as public service minister in the former PPP/C government, asked for the names, designations, salaries and non-salary benefits of the ministry’s 288 contract workers to be provided in writing. Westford also asked that the minister provide the names and salaries of the four highest paid and the four lowest paid workers among them.
On the four highest paid contracted workers, Harmon identified Andrew Bishop, Guyana’s lead negotiator to the UN climate change convention, who is earning $1,035,000 per month; Floyd Levi, head of the E-Governance Unit, who is earning $930,000 per month; Colonel (rtd) Chabilall Ramsarup, head of the Civil Defence Commission, who earns $808,000 per month; and Janelle Christian, the head of the Climate Change Office, who earns $700,000 per month. The four lowest paid workers are three cleaners and a handyman, who each earn $50,000.
On the former request, Harmon undertook to provide same to the House this morning.
Opposition Chief Whip Gail Teixeira reminded the House that from 2008 to 2014, the then opposition had asked the person in charge of the sector to read all the names and requested information pertaining to all contract workers. “It was only stopped in the 2015 budget… I do not agree with giving him [Harmon] an opportunity… Now, this was a big demand by the opposition… therefore I am calling on the honourable member to uphold what was the demand they made on the PPP when it was in government. Please read the names, positions and salaries to this House,” she said, while adding that it is all about principle. She further pointed out that they are still awaiting answers for questions they asked during the last budget.
However, government MP Raphael Trotman, on a point of order, stated that in the Committee of Supply there shall be no debate but rather questions are put. He pointed out that one member has been asked to provide the information in a specific format and now another is now making a demand.
Speaker Barton Scotland subsequently ruled that Harmon had already given a commitment.
Opposition MP Juan Edghill sought clarity on how many contracts were terminated in 2015 and the names of those persons as well as what is responsible for the increase of contract workers by 126 (162 in 2015 to 288 in 2016), the date of appointments and the process used.
Harmon said that the increase in contract workers represents “increase across the spectrum of persons who have been employed since May, 2015.” He informed that because of the reorganisation of the Ministry of the Presidency, several ministries and departments which stood alone before May 2015 became part of the ministry. “What that meant was that the Ministry of Natural Resources, which then became a Department of Natural Resources, became a part of the Ministry of Presidency. The Public Service Ministry became a department under the Ministry of Presidency. The Ministry of Citizenship, that previously encompassed persons who were in the Ministry of Public Service and, more particularly, persons who served in the General Register Office, Immigration and Naturalisation, they all became part of the ministry,” he informed.
He said that a similar situation obtained with the E-Governance Unit.
“What we are seeing, basically, is a coming together of several ministries and departments and, therefore, the hiring under those departments were catered under the Ministry of the Presidency. They were hired under the authority of the Ministry of the Presidency. So, we have this figure spread across several areas,” he said before indicating that he was prepared to provide the House with detailed figures, the dates of employment and the process used.
Edghill pressed for information on the process used to hire the contract workers. Harmon said that these persons were “identified. They were interviewed… all of these persons who are on contract they all have files.” He said that some of the contract worker positions were advertised, while some were identified “based on a need which existed at that time and that was urgent.” He assured that they were interviewed by a panel and were hired based on a required need.
Harmon also said that the advertisements were placed in the newspapers and some even went internationally. Harmon said that he was prepared to bring this information to the House to prove that there were advertisements.
According to Harmon, the public service currently comprises a “large amount of contract employees that we found” but he acknowledged that government has added to it. He said that it is hoped that over the next five years, the government will work towards completely having a public service that is made of career public servants.
Minister of Citizenship Winston Felix, whose allocations also fall under the Ministry of the Presidency, spoke as well on contract workers when questioned.
When asked by opposition MP Komal Chand when the contracting of persons in the public service is likely to come to an end, Felix said, “This policy is coming to zero… we will decide that, you can’t force it out of us.”
He continued. “As we inherited it, we used it but we will eventually return to the old system of advertisement and giving everyone notice in the newspaper of the vacancy.”
Astronomical rise
Harmon was also grilled on huge increases in monetary allocations for the rental of buildings, stationary supplies, and food and electricity costs.
PPP/C MP Irfaan Ali highlighted the increase of electricity charges from $14.1 million in 2015 to over $119 million. He pointed out that this increase comes at a time when there is a drop in electricity charges and reduced fuel costs. He asked what had caused this increase, which are the additional locations and who are the persons living or working at the locations. Harmon explained that there were no additional locations. “What is happening is that previously, in 2014, there was a prepaid sum and now what the Ministry of Finance is doing, by way of proper budgetary allocations and following the rules, is that they have allocated a sum to be spent properly…,” he said.
Fuel and lubricants, MP Anil Nandlall pointed out, have moved from $17 million to $64 million. Asked for an explanation of this “astronomical increase,” Harmon said that government had brought back several vehicles that the previous administration “had left for rotting” into operation and there was an increased level of fuel consumption because some of the vehicles were old. The intention is to phase some of the vehicles out, he said, before adding that more “vehicles have been brought into the fleet and government is paying for the fuel and not individuals drawing fuel from GuyOil.”
Harmon, during questioning, said there was no increase in the cost for presidential guard services. Edghill, however, insisted that the $345 million is higher than the allocation for last year. Pressed for a reason for this higher figure, Harmon said that there was an increase in salaries for those ranks which had to be dealt with. He said that additionally the ministry is catering for an imminent increase in the number of ranks since the present complement is woefully short.
Asked to explain the increase in security services from $17 million to $55 million, Harmon said that in 2015 and into 2016 there were some contracts which were terminated for various reasons. Those persons have since been replaced and new hires posted to the residences of government officials. Asked if the security services were sole-sourced or retained through public tender, Harmon informed that they were sole-sourced.
SOCU
Edghill pointed out that under the line item Events and National Security, there was a significant increase from $28 million to $40 million. Asked to explain, Harmon informed that these sums are for the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU).
Edghill questioned why, if SOCU falls under the police force, the allocation was placed under the Ministry of the Presidency. Decribing it as one of the “holdover arrangments” from the PPP/C administration, he explained that it falls under that ministry but the intention is place it under the Guyana Police Force. “This is basically trying to phase it into its full role under the Guyana Police Force,” he said.
Later, PPP/C backbencher Charles Ramson Jnr requested a breakdown of the expenses of SOCU, including the members and their salaries and benefit packages information.
Harmon stated that he is not sure he could provide some of the information being requested for security reasons. “I will consult and provide as much as the information as is available and what these amounts cover,” he said.
Ramson later asked whether it could be clarified whether the Financial Intelligence Unit has been providing any financial budgetary support to SOCU.
PPP/C front bencher Clement Rohee questioned the increase in contract workers in the Citizenry Ministry from 60 to 116. The cost of salaries for contract workers jumped from $25.4 million in 2015 to $130 million. Felix explained that the 60 were inherited when the ministry was created. Their names, positions and salaries were read out to the House. The remainder will be provided later.
Felix further stated that these persons were hired after applying to the ministry. He said that when the ministry took office there was a flood of applications and more are still coming.
Questions were raised about the amount of money budgeted for birth certificate purchases. Felix informed that $32 million has been allocated for that project. He later informed that over 300,000 Guyana birth certificates, with special security features, have been ordered. This order was made based on an increased demand.
PPP/C MP Dr Frank Anthony later asked why there was a need for so many birth certificates when there is an estimated 15,000 births per year. In response, Felix said that Dr. Anthony should not confuse births with the demand for birth certificates.
