Opposition upbraids Business Minister for failures over 2 years in Office

…as Granger’s Green economy proposal dismissed as ‘rum shop gaff’

Business Minister Dominic Gaskin and his shadow counterpart in the National Assembly, People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Member of Parliament Joe Hamilton, were the first to trade barbs as the first day of the debates on the 2017 Estimates got underway.

Minister Gaskin in his presentation spoke of the virtues of an early Budget being presented, while his shadow counterpart lamented the Business Minster’s failure to achieve anything substantial during his tenure.

Hamilton told the House that this was his view since the Minister from his inception in the portfolio, has only ever regaled about the things that he and his ministry ‘will do’, instead of what it has, in fact, accomplished.

Defending the more than $1 billion allocated for the Business Ministry in 2017, Gaskin was adamant that with the early presentation of the estimates, Guyanese, including the business community, will now be able to plan for the upcoming year.

Government, he said, did not wish to skylark with such an important fiscal tool in the form of the Budget by waiting to present it for passage until April—as was the case under the PPP/C Administration.

Taking a swipe at one of the Opposition speakers who drew reference to the fact that the coalition A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government had inherited consistent and sustained economic growth, Gaskin suggested that the decline had begun before the current Administration took office.

Green State

Responding to allegations of there being no comprehensive plan with regards President David Granger’s stated proposal of pursuing a Green State, Gaskin used the occasion to point to the $1 billion allocation to pursue projects in alignment with the President’s vision.

He spoke of the tax concessions and holidays announced to benefit the sector.

Government has also been taking flack over its proposal on the green energy front to provide concessions for the import of electric cars and charging stations, but according to Minister Gaskin, “we are looking at initial stages of developing the green economy.”

He sought to defend the Administration’s handling of the PetroCaribe fund, saying that his predecessor’s approach to utilising the fund was a flawed one, since it was Government taking a long-term debt to convert it into short-term payments for a sector that was in trouble—the rice industry.

Speaking to some of the developments for 2017 as it relates to the Business Ministry, Gaskin pointed to the refurbishment of the Guyana National Exhibition Centre which he said would serve to boost the venue with regards the hosting of business expositions.

The Minister spoke too of the continued pursuit of a single window processing system, in addition to upgrades at the Guyana Small Business Bureau and the Guyana National Bureau of Standards, among other departments that fall within the purview of his Ministry.

According to Minister Gaskin, the Business Ministry is pursuing a five-year strategic plan germane to the acceleration of business development in Guyana, including reducing the barriers to doing business here.

Communicating a message directly to the business community, Minister Gaskin was adamant that Budget 2017 is “pro-business and pro-worker.”

Hamilton in rebutting the Minister’s presentation, was equally adamant that Budget 2017 is in fact ‘poisonous’ and can in fact be considered “the first death announcement Budget” that will transition the nation from bad to worse—a Budget that is bad for all Guyanese with the exception of Government functionaries and their cronies.

Hamilton in his rebuttal of Minister Gaskin’s presentation, said he should have focused on employment and business opportunities instead of regaling the House with plans to refurbish the exhibition centre, the purchase of a vehicle and the rental of tents.

“Rum shop gaff”

Dismissing as “rum shop gaff”, Hamilton in making his presentation also took a swipe at the Government’s proposals to provide incentives for the import of charging stations for electrical cars, in addition to the cars themselves.

He lamented the current state of affairs of the electricity grid, saying that the substantive Minster, David Patterson, is hard-pressed to keep the power flowing in order to ensure that the fish and chicken in the ordinary man’s fridge does not spoil.

Hamilton also seized the opportunity to call out the entire Government over the 2017 Estimates, drawing reference to the growing voices of opposition as against the very few Ministers that have gone into the public domain to speak in its defence, saying “like they themselves have a difficulty with the Budget and their measures.”

Hamilton concluded his presentation to the debate by saying, “all and sundry” have indicated their displeasure with the measures proposed in the Budget; and joined with his colleagues to call on the APNU/AFC Government to withdraw its Budget and work with the PPP/C to “come again”.