His escaping imprisonment only through presidential respite is one of the key issues Minister of Finance Winston Jordan will consider as he mulls a possible return to his current post if asked by the APNU+AFC coalition to serve again, should they win the next general elections.
“I will think about it again. I will give it a positive outlook but it continues to bother me that you give public service, which, as you know, don’t pay much, but you can be dragged to court in your personal capacity for debts owed (by) the state. That one has me floored from now to eternity,” Jordan said, when asked by Stabroek News if he would serve again in the post, should his government win the next elections.
“My family is pleading with me every day to leave the work. They don’t want me to continue. For them, they have suffered enough and I think that this one was the last straw. I felt put out, that all my years of public service, unblemished, could have been blotted by this development. Notwithstanding the rest of it, I don’t feel comfortable…” he added.
President David Granger last month invoked his power under Article 188(1) (b) of the Constitution, to grant Jordan, both in his personal capacity and in his capacity as minister, “respite of the execution of the punishment until all appeals and remedies available to him and the state have been exhausted.” The President’s actions came after a court ordered that Jordan be imprisoned if he failed to make a court-ordered payment of US$2 million to Dipcon Construction by a stipulated deadline.
Article 188 (1) (b) of the Constitution says that the president may “grant to any person a respite, either indefinite or for a specified period, of the execution of any punishment imposed on that person for such an offence.”
The decision coincided with Attorney General Basil Williams appealing the Full Court’s decision to reject a stay requested by Jordan of the order that he be jailed for contempt for not paying Dipcon the money.
Jordan said that barely escaping jail has him still traumatised and it will be an area he focuses on as he mulls a potential return.
He said that with a number of court judgments against the finance ministry pending, it is the wise thing to analyse all the scenarios that can be presented. “I am still doing up the list of court judgements that have been made against government and the last one pending that can break the bank literally. Some of [these] things are being litigated and so on, so I’ll leave it at that. That one shook me a bit and will leave a bad taste in my public service career,” he said.
“I have to listen to my family and whether I want to go through this again and so on and so forth. I will give it a positive outlook. I don’t want to say yay or nay but there is a lot to think about. Remember, I am not a professional politician,” he added.
Noting that some persons may say that court litigation and the subsequent decisions comes with the territory of being in politics, moreso with his portfolio, Jordan said only veteran politicians would not be moved emotionally by nearly missing a prison sentence.
I am a professional
“It may come with the territory of being in politics but I am not a politician. It might be for those people who are proud to tell people they are 40 and 50 years a politician. I will never be around 40 and 50 years because I will never see myself as a politician. I am a professional,” he emphasised.
And his career is one he is proud of because of his many accomplishments.
Questioned as to which of his achievements he is most proud of, Jordan said that he could not single out one as they were too many and he valued all at the same level.
“I call every achievement I have had a major [one]. But If I could name a couple, one would be that I kept the economy growing, despite the challenge and turbulence. In the context of low inflation, in 2017, we had deflation in the economy. I believe that another of my achievements has been the lowering of taxes and the numerous concessions that we were able to bring in to stimulate manufacturing and so on. It took nine years, between 2006 and 2015, for the last government to move salaries by 62 per cent or to $39,000 [minimum wage]. It took us three and half years to move from a higher base by 62 per cent or from $39,000 to $64,000. Anyone can check, and it is on a higher base, not on a lower base,” he said.
“We were able to do that, again, in spite of all the turbulence…and you have to admit that the level of investment in roads and not only Georgetown roads, the level of investment in water, in light, is remarkable. Just go to all those communities. Go and see big fancy road in East Berbice. You know how it was done? Not by loan money. Not by the loans that they [the PPP/C] took… but by money from the treasury we set aside to do roads,” he said.
The Finance Minister then turned to the amnesty given on interest for taxes saying that could also be seen as an accomplishment since the move saw some $10 billion added to the nation’s coffers. “They tried to make an issue with amnesty last year, trying to say we giving we friends taxes when it was clear that all we were going to do was…be willing to hold the taxes and today, we are the beneficiaries of $10 billion in arrears for last year and allowed the [country’s economy] to grow by 4.1 per cent,” he said.
Another accomplishment “ranking high” for Jordan is getting legislation in place for the Natural Resource Fund. “We are one of the few countries that have a legislation in place prior to first oil,” he boasted.
But Jordan wanted to make clear that while he listed achievements, it would be remiss of him to take credit when it was a collective effort by the APNU+AFC Cabinet.
“Winston Jordan is not an individual, he is a collective and I could not have done anything unless the Cabinet gave the go-ahead. I don’t see myself as doing any one thing. I give credit to my entire Cabinet. I can’t go off and do things on my own,” he emphasised.
Asked if he had any regrets or areas he would call low points, Jordan said that he reflects on decisions made but does not dwell on the past or what should have been.
“Hindsight is always 20/20. I have been wearing this four eye since I was 10 years. I could only use this how God allowed me. I could tell you one thing where Winston Jordan is concerned – he is never afraid to make a decision. I can live with all the decisions I have made. When I came on this job, I came as a technocrat, not as a politician. Willing to give my professional advice and training to the people and Government of Guyana,” he said.
“I put myself in the place of the ordinary person and what they would feel and what they are looking forward to from their politicians. It is from there I plan. I have no regrets. I don’t have time with rabble-rousers. If you libel me then it is another matter. I will take you to court. But if people talk, it doesn’t upset me. God blessed me because I am 62 years old and I am grateful. I have no time to waste with armchair politicians and rabble-rousers who take up your TV time and you can’t even watch your cricket in peace,” he added.
