…for whom?
Right after your Eyewitness complained about the PNC-led APNU/AFC coalition planning to blow whatever petroleum revenues might trickle down to us on “boondoggles”, there comes the announcement from Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, that B’s gonna be ‘injected” into the housing sector immediately. So, since we’re so broke that thousands of sugar workers have to be fired, where’s the money coming from? 
Not to worry!! Let’s just borrow today to cover the “budget deficit”!! After all, aren’t we going to have oil money in a short while to pay off our cumulative budget deficits, which we were told would be “stabilised” from the oil revenues??
This was the same kind of thinking that got Ghana into trouble with their Jubilee Oil, which ran into delivery problems while the debts started choking them to death. They’re still trying to get out from under that “spending before the money comes in” syndrome.
The excuse given by Harmon is that the economy needs a “stimulus”!! Really?? So when did Rip van Jordan wake up?? Is Harmon sure he’s not being suckered by the business community – who’d been accused by Jordan of doing a “Chicken Little” act?? The economy’s collapsing!! The economy’s collapsing!!
Harmon announced that the Ministry of Housing will be “injecting” $5B into housing in Regions 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 10. In case you’re wondering why Minister of HOUSING, Valerie Patterson, didn’t make the announcement, she’s busy with the OTHER $5 billion that’s being spent on Housing via the CH&PA for the Police and GDF, and so on and so forth. But hey! There’s a school of thought that advises “better late than never”, and there are those who counter, “Too late shall be the cry”! Which will it be?? Well, just like injections in medicine, timing is everything.
If the patient’s dead, all the injections in the world ain’t gonna get him up and about. SO, where’s the Guyanese economy on the overall scale of economic well-being? As your Eyewitness has been going on and on (God knows!!), with every single industry in the country but gold collapsing like temperamental soufflés – the yellow metal’s actually a life support system. Pull it and the country’s dead.
So what will the housing injection do? In the near term, of course, it’ll help – to the extent more money will be circulating. In the medium term? With most of the housing stock directed at the Government’s supporters, the divisions in the country will be exacerbated. Will it be enough to revive the patient? Not likely.
But accepting you have a problem is the first step in solving it.
Maybe Jordan will now ask Jagdeo for help?
…for AFC change?
It hasn’t been a good week for your Eyewitness…too many fires to “out”. So, he really had a good belly laugh when he read that Moses Nagamootoo, the man who would be Prime Minister, said the Cummingsburg Accord needs to be “renegotiated”. You think?? And when would the PM be demanding the renegotiation? Pray tell. Well, rather disappointingly but not surprisingly, Nagamootoo said that depends on the Leader of the AFC – who just happens to be Raphael Trotman.
Now why would Trotman want to do that? You’d remember, dear reader, that Trotman has already negotiated a Nassau Accord with the now President Granger. And based on the evidence, his bread is WELL buttered!! Nagamootoo epitomises the evisceration of the AFC’s agreement, announced on Valentine Day 2015. He was supposed to herald in the new political culture in the land when, for the first time, Executive power was going to have two power centres.
All he – and his 11% – got was Larwah!!
…for courage
Your Eyewitness was just informed that the aforesaid PM and ousted AFC leader Ramjattan just sent an SOS to their few remaining faithful to picket their office next week.
Why? Well they need an excuse why they should reject VAT on private education!!
