President Irfaan Ali yesterday met representatives from Guyana’s small political parties at a working lunch at State House on the upcoming budget.
“You are all stakeholders in this process. And as we have embarked on Budget 2021, I thought it necessary that at least we have a working lunch and examine some of your thoughts, some of what you see as priorities, so that we can have a discussion, so that we can consult, so that we can arrive at a programme in which all of Guyana feel as if they’re part of it”, Ali was quoted as saying in an Office of the President release.
Present at the engagement were representatives from A New and United Guyana (ANUG), the Liberty and Justice Party (LJP), the Citizenship Initiative (TCI), the New Movement (TNM), the United Republican Party (URP), and Change Guyana.
The president was joined by members of the Cabinet, including Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh; Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira; Minister within the Office of the Prime Minister, Kwame McCoy; Minister of Agriculture, Zulfikar Mustapha; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hugh Todd, and the Minister of Amerindian Affairs, Pauline Sukhai.
In his remarks, Ali spoke of the importance of “collective ownership” of the development trajectory, which he said will not only lead to greater prosperity and prospects but will pave the way for the opportunity to unify the people of Guyana.
“And that is the greatest project we have that is utmost on my mind… We can build a country that is strong, prosperous and economically viable. That takes critical thinking, that takes vision, that takes clarity, that takes action, but coming together and unifying requires a bit more.”
The President emphasised the need to break down “selfish barriers” and to embrace new ways of thinking and behaviours in order to achieve this goal. He added that these Budget 2021 discussions are part of government’s plan to be innovative. “These are some of the things that we want to capture in an innovative and new manner, not only in Budget 2021, but in the agenda moving forward…”
Ali spoke of his attempts to reach out to former President David Granger in a similar manner of inclusivity.
“We have been reaching out and trying our best… I invited former President Granger to a meeting that he did not attend and then we have the one component of the opposition who are still mischievously peddling the agenda that the Government is illegitimate so we have to deal with things in context… that narrative has to be corrected.”
Back in December, Ali had invited former President Granger to a “working lunch” with three other past presidents “to allow for the generating and sharing of ideas on moving Guyana forward.” Granger had declined the invitation on the grounds that there was a lack of agenda. He had recommended that the meeting be deferred until several “important issues [are] satisfactorily settled.”
Singh who spoke at the event, stressed the importance of the engagement in finalising Budget 2021 and asked the representatives to share their visions of Guyana’s future and to highlight the critical needs of the country.
He also expressed his appreciation and a sense of “indebtedness” to those present for their role in ensuring that Guyana remains a democratic country, adding, “… the victory is one that must be preserved going forward.”
Teixeira expressed her appreciation to the representatives present for acknowledging the invitation by the President and posited that the engagement was integral for the country to move forward in an inclusionary manner.
Following the remarks by the Head of State and Ministers, representatives from the small parties expressed their opinions on the impact of the engagement with the President.
Dr Vishnu Bandhu from the URP said the discussions provided the platform for all parties to collaborate, to move the country forward and to bring the people of Guyana together.
Dr Abedin Kindi Ali from Change Guyana added, “I am here on behalf of our party to participate and to give some input on the 2021 budget… we are looking forwards to a meaningful discussion.”
Representative from A New and United Guyana, Aruna Budhram said, “I am very heartened that there is this will to reach out … I understand that there is a duty and an obligation and because of that I am very happy that we have a voice and that we are able to participate in this process.”
ANUG member, Kian Jabour expressed appreciation for being included in the process and towards the Government for reaching out.
Representative of the joinder parties in Parliament, Lenox Shuman said he was looking forward to the opportunity to engage with the Government on aspects of Budget 2021.
Asha Kissoon from The New Movement said, “ I must say that the efforts that we have seen so far to kick start the economy have been fruitful … we look forward to the discussions today, we have some inputs and we are happy that we are able to voice our concerns.”
In addition to discussing the budget, representatives were also briefed on the developments in Venezuela regarding the detained fishermen.
