Ignoring criticism of the lack of information on plans for debt management and handling the COVID-19 pandemic, Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh yesterday wrapped the 2021 budget debate with a dismissal of Opposition Leader Joseph Harmon, saying an overture towards cooperation was an insult to the intelligence of Guyanese.
Using the 65 minutes allotted to him for clarification on the budget, Singh said the opposition coalition’s statements and actions inside and outside of the House are “starkly in contrast.”
Harmon, in his address to the National Assembly yesterday, signaled the APNU+AFC coalition’s readiness to work with the PPP/C led government for national development.
“I contrast that statement with the invitation extended by His Excellency to former President David Granger to meet a forum of former presidents… A meeting with former presidents, with an invitation from the President, was spurned by former president David Granger,” Singh said.
APNU+AFC member Shurwayne Holder however pointed out that President Irfaan Ali should be meeting with the Opposition Leader instead of past presidents.
Launching an attack on Harmon, Singh said he spoke in a “feigned tone of magnanimity about willingness to engage and trying to convey an impression of civility” but when Ali addressed the House recently the opposition engaged in “raucous and vulgar behaviour” outside the chambers after absenting themselves.
But as he made this point, an opposition back bencher shouted from across the floor, “What did y’all do when President Granger address Parliament?”
“It is very easy to stand and say all sorts of thing to try to convey an impression of what you are but the reality, sir, indicates a very different truth… what it discloses, in fact, sir, is that the APNU has no respect for the intelligence of the Guyanese people,” Singh said. “The Guyanese people are far more intelligent and sophisticated” than the opposition believes, he added. His comment was greeted by a loud applause from the government side of the House.
As Singh maintained that there was a well-orchestrated attempt to rig the March 2nd election by the APNU+AFC following claims from Harmon that it was an accusation, APNU+AFC member Khemraj Ramjattan shouted that the events of December 21st, 2018 were well orchestrated. On the latter date a member of Ramjattan’s party defected to help pass a PPP/C no-confidence motion against the then APNU+AFC government, triggering its fall.
Singh went on to question whether the nation and the international community could have imagined that APNU+AFC barred the Carter Center observers from returning to observe the national recount and also delayed the process despite having a high level team from the Caribbean Community present to observe.
“So, Mr Speaker, I was saying to the Opposition Leader, it is okay to come and adopt this nice magnanimous statesman-like tone but stop insulting the intelligence of the Guyanese people. They did not imagine all of those things,” Ashni stressed to another round of loud applause from his colleagues.
Public servants
Turning his attention to public servants, Singh said the opposition stands in the House claiming to fight for these workers, but charged that when the APNU+AFC took office it “set about on a rampage of political persecution against opponents and people who had given a lifetime of service to the public sector.”
He stated that within the last five days, the opposition speakers painted the image of having public servants at heart but argued that when they were in government they sought to reduce contracted workers’ salaries and benefit by 22.5% if they were under 45 years.
He said while they reported what salary increases were for the years 2016 to 2019, it was a known fact that this was not a feature of the budget speech.
“While they historically gave what the salary increases were for the years 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019, they gave no indication in the speech what will be awarded for 2016, 2017, 2018, [and] 2019. None of them in the budget speech indicated what it will be in the preceding year or ensuing year,” he noted.
He also slammed the former government for the tax measures imposed as he noted that it made it difficult for the working class of people despite receiving an increase.
He made reference to what he dubbed trumped up charges against PPP/C officials, like himself, which he said were aimed at humiliating them before they were dismissed from court.
“To come now and to stand and to say what has happened to public service when in fact such lasting damage was done to the political climate in this country by the behaviour of the dictatorial APNU+AFC government, shame on you! Shame on you!” Singh said.
Singh accused the APNU+AFC of lowering the political engagement to its lowest during the years they were in government.
He further added that the APNU+AFC claims to represent 47% of the electorate and their views but in his opinion the coalition does not have the moral authority to serve as credible representatives for any Guyanese. “The 47% of people they profess to represent really do deserve better,” Singh said with more loud support from his colleagues.
But as Singh made his presentation, only six opposition parliamentarians remained in the house.
“The people of Guyana spoke in March 2020 and rejected the oppressive policies of the APNU+AFC… [The] last five days demonstrated to the people of Guyana (it) has nothing constructive to offer Guyana and the people put them where they are…,” Singh said as he concluded his speech and the week of debates.
