The government’s application for additional funds for security in all 10 regions is due to the threats to public institutions, according to Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall.
After almost four hours of examination, the National Assembly yesterday afternoon approved $5.1B in supplementary allocations which include $561.9M for the Ministry of Home Affairs to beef up security at all Government infrastructure across the country, $3.3B for the Ministry of Health’s COVID-19 fight and $3.8B in funding for the Ministry of Agriculture.
The allocations which were passed are detailed in financial paper No.3 of 2021 which included $5b in current estimates and $60.1m in capital estimates.
Financial paper No.3 of 2021 was one of the two papers tabled in the House on Monday following the parliamentary recess.
Among the allocations approved was a sum of $3.8B for the Ministry of Agriculture which will provide funding for one-off grants to severed sugar workers, out-of-crop support to the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and operational expenses for the National Drainage Irrigation Authority.
Responding to APNU+AFC Member of Parliament Khemraj Ramjattan’s request for a breakdown for each allocation, Minister of Agriculture Zulfikar Mustapha defended the sugar workers who were fired under the previous administration.
“…Every single dollar that is stated here will go towards the development of our country and the people of our country,” Mustapha said as he explained that over 5000 severed sugar workers would have already received the $250,000 one-off grants from the Government.
Under the previous administration, thousands of sugar workers were placed on the breadline following the closure of the Wales, Skeldon, Rose Hall and East Demerara estates.
Mustapha highlighted that $2.3B was given to the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) for out-of-crop support and another $236.9M has been allocated to the D&I (Drainage and Irrigation) system to improve the system, provide services to the farmers and enhance the country’s food security. “Because today Guyana is leading the agriculture agenda in the Caribbean,” he said.
Pressed further on the monies allocated towards GuySuCo’s out-of-crop expenses, Mustapha said funds have been set aside for fuel and lubricants, wages and salaries, essential parts and materials and pension.
“…This has to do with the running down with the factories because when he took over, GuySuCo was running with about 40 percent capacity…..We would have expended a large sum to ensure that we safeguard GuySuCo. The budget of GuySuCo has been exhausted that is why this has become an emergency,” Mustapha said.
Another expense listed which was greeted by back-and-forth debate between Minister of Education Priya Manickchand and Members of the Opposition was the $285.1M for payment of cash grants to private schools.
The Government’s ‘Because We Care’ cash grant and School Uniform and Supplies grant programme was initially introduced for only students in public schools but it was later extended for private school students to benefit.
A sum of $3.7B had already been allocated to the Ministry for this programme.
In providing statistics asked for by APNU+AFC MP Ganesh Mahipaul, Education Minister Priya Manickchand said that altogether a sum of $$3,352,774,000 was distributed amongst children in public school while the students of private schools received $323,000,000.
The opposition accused Manickchand of piloting the programme for political reasons. However, Manickchand described the distribution of the grant as an act of love and service. She said students had to be registered in order to benefit.
“….This programme where $19,000 was offered to each public school and private school child was just that. A programme where each child in every school, in every region…..everywhere…So every single child was entitled,” Manickchand said while adding “We made a promise. Our promise is that we would restore the cash grant for students once we got into office….We thought it was a priority we kept our promise to give every child $19,000”.
Manickchand assured that the ministry’s support for students to pursue their education will not stop but rather will increase until it reaches at least $50,000.
An additional sum of $561.9M was sought for security charges for several buildings across the ten administrative regions. The amount is apart from $2.9B that was already allocated for this cause.
When the Committee of Supply arrived at the examination of these line items yesterday afternoon, APNU+AFC Member of Parliament Ronald Cox asked what is “unforeseen, unavoidable and urgent” about the expenditure.
Principles of democracy
“…..Because we value freedom and because we believe in the true principles of democracy we would have thought that when we came into Government that we were going to deal with partners in the Opposition who are credible and who were well-intentioned to ensure that good governance prevails in our country. What we have found. We have found missing documents, we have found threats on public installations so we have to make sure that all our installations in every region and I am going to repeat this for every question that you ask in all ten regions, we have to protect the Government installations from the APNU+AFC threats on the installations of our country,” Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Nigel Dharamlall responded.
Over the past few months there have been a number of fires at public buildings including the North West Secondary school, the Brickdam Police Station and a section of the Police Headquarters Complex at Eve Leary.
Investigations confirmed that the Brickdam Police Station and the secondary school fires were both acts of arson. The cause of the fire at Police headquarters has not yet been revealed.
Other allocations include $265M for the Office of the President for operational expenses to the Guyana Lands and Survey Commission, $3.35b for the COVID-19 fight and $755m towards the battle against flooding.
It also provided $60.1m for the procurement of eight containerized offices, construction of two entry bridges and gates at the Brickdam Annex as a result of the October 2nd fire that destroyed the historic Brickdam Police Station.
