Dear Editor,
On Thursday, September 1, there was an uproar in the RDC boardroom during the statutory meeting. The Regional Chairman Mr Dennis Deoroop blew his top, vehemently objecting to an article in the Guyana Chronicle captioned ‘Region 6 RDC accused of ignoring budget proposals by NDCs’. Moreover, his bragging about being a seasoned politician is quite disturbing and totally unprofessional for a public servant.
Budget consultation is at the heart of regional development and it must be recalled that the Region 2 RDC has approved its proposed $4.7B budget for 2017 at its August 9 statutory meeting, after a series of consultations with Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs), the Anna Regina Town Council, the Water Users’ Association, the Essequibo Chamber of Commerce, Women’s Group, programme managers, and other key stakeholders. It was boldly reported in the press that it was the first time that budget consultations were ever held in that Region. Therefore, this is the type of consultation needed in all the regions.
Further, it must also be recalled that in 2013, it was alleged that the Region 8 REO bypassed the Chairman and the Council in the preparation of that Region’s budget. It was claimed that no consultations were held. So this would suggest that this type of budgeting is the norm but the question is whether this should this be the manner in which regional budgets are prepared and approved.
In a letter to the press I emphasized the fact that the Region 6 Budget of $1.1 billion was passed after just over an hour’s deliberation, and this was mainly due to the fact that the Regional Engineer Mr Roopesh failed to provide the RDC Councillors with any explanation of the criteria used to arrive at the figures he submitted for all the capital expenditures. I further wrote that the Region 6, 2017 Budget exhibited poor planning and as a result no useful insight and evaluation could have been done by the councillors who vetoed the capital expenditures in that budget. Items and figures were simply read to the RDC Councillors with the copy of the Estimates providing minuscule information. There was no mention of any stakeholder consultations.
Furthermore, as the Chairman of the Kilcoy/Hamshire NDC, it was evident that the proposals submitted by my NDC were overlooked in the compilation of the Regional Budget and that no consultations were held by the RDC to justify the exclusion of items which the residents and the NDC Councillors have prioritized. When I questioned the Regional Vice-Chairman he bluntly told me that he and the Regional Engineer have done a ‘drive through’ in the areas and knew exactly what should be done! When the reading of the Regional Budget was done, I questioned the exclusion of the excavation of 2 main drainage canals at Belvedere and Nigg, and was told that the Region will use its ‘long boom excavator’ to dig these canals. We have been hearing that for the past four months. It must be noted that all the large excavators in the Region have been inoperable for the past months. I further questioned the exclusion of a mud dam in the Kilcoy housing area which should have been a priority, but apparently the Vice-Chairman and the Engineer did not drive through that area!
It must be reiterated that there must be broad-based consultations with all stakeholders if this Region is to move forward. This Region is not the private property of any political party and there is a time and place for political antics. It should not be done at the expense of this Region.
When I took the oath of office I swore to carry out my duties as a Councillor “without fear, favour or ill will” and I will ensure that I do not allow political considerations to make me deviate from that oath. I wish to remind my fellow councillors of this oath, and unless this oath is taken seriously then the Region and our country will never see the socio-economic development which we so badly crave.
Therefore, it was quite alarming to see the ‘dirty politics’ being displayed at the RDC and the manner in which the APNU Councillors demanded an apology from Councillor Harbhajan and a retraction of the said article when the main focus of that article is that there should have been genuine consultations with the NDCs and that projects prioritized by them should have been given prominence. What is the cardinal sin in that? Is it not that what should have been done from the inception? What is the agenda of these APNU Councillors? Is it to get rid of their AFC counterparts so that they can hog all the governmental offices gradually? It is already in the air that AFC’s Dr Ramayya will be replaced by an APNU person from the Regional office. If this is the modus operandi then it is time for the AFC to take a hard and strong look at what is happening.
In conclusion, the 2017 Estimates presented for approval at the RDC and which were approved can be regarded as mere figures, with no evidence of broad-based consultations. I do hope that in the future that the RDC can reach out to all stakeholders and do proper consultations so that everyone can be involved in the decision-making process. It is time to put an end to this type of farcical budget preparation. Furthermore, their views should be given priority in the final analysis since there is no place for dictatorial attitudes and tendencies in this country. We have suffered for too long along that route.
Moreover, the Regional Vice-Chairman should unreservedly apologize to the Council for his unprofessional behaviour and remarks directed at Councillor Harbhajan and Dr Ramayya made in the RDC Boardroom after the conclusion of the statutory meeting.
Yours faithfully,
Haseef Yusuf
RDC Councillor
Region 6
