Problematic training scheme gets $1B approved for 2017

… even as Indigenous People’s Affairs Minister fails to account for 0M ‘solar panels’

The problematic and controversial Hinterland Employment Youth Service (HEYS), executed under the Indigenous People’s Affairs Ministry, was on Wednesday given the go head to utilise almost $1 billion to fund its programme for 2017, but not before a relentless two-hour long probe of the Ministry’s expenditure in the National Assembly.

The House reconvened and resolved itself into the Committee of Supply in order to consider the almost $2.5 billion for the Indigenous Peoples Affairs Ministry.
Minister within the Indigenous People’s Affairs Ministry, Valerie Garrido-Lowe, with the assistance of the Ministry’s senior technical personal fielded an unrelenting grilling from members of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Opposition before conceding to the many hiccups that have plagued the HEYS programme throughout the course of the year.
Launched in 2015 by the coalition A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Administration, the progamme currently trains in excess of 1800 students utilising the services of some 373 facilitators across 112 Amerindian villages.
Funded under allocations for Amerindian Development Projects, the House heard that $996 million has been set aside for the HEYS project in the coming year even as Minister Garrido-Lowe failed miserably to give assurances that the problems that plagued the programme in 2016 had in fact been remedied.
PPP/C backbencher Yvonne Pearson used the occasion to ask the Minister to provide an accurate analysis of some of the problems facing the programme since according to reports, not only have the equipment for the training of the youths not been reaching the communities, several of the students and facilitators have had to wait months.
She sought to query of the Minster too what remedial actions have been taken to ensure not only a smoother execution in the coming year, but for the remainder of the year.
Minister Garrido-Lowe – providing the answers in the stead of Substantive Minister, Vice President Sidney Allicock – admitted to the “hiccups we have been suffering at the Ministry which will be ironed.”
Still unable to inform the House of what remedial actions have or will be taken, the Ministry said discussions have been had, conclusions drawn and measures will be put in place.
She was nonetheless happy to report however that the majority of villages did not wait for the tools promised by the Ministry to begin venturing out into farming, catering, joinery and other such projects.
Minister Garrido-Lowe admitted to the House that the progress made was essentially without the tools promised by the Ministry but “we will fix.”
The Minister appeared to be at a loss for answers again this time when questioned on solar panels and related equipment to be purchased with the members of the House at the end of the consideration being none the wiser.
It was Opposition Member of Parliament, Nigel Dharamlall – formerly the Permanent Secretary in the then Amerindian Affairs Ministry – who told the House that he is aware of payments made to the tune of $500 million for the purchase of the solar panels and related equipment.
According to Dharamlall, the items were purchased for homes and industrial type equipment to be used to power the Information Communications Technology (ICT) hubs.
Minister Garrido-Lowe, reported to the House that the ICT hubs and related pieces are no longer being catered for under the Indigenous People’s Affairs Ministry.
Dharamlall persisted to no avail, as he sought to determine the actual location of the equipment since he was certain that the payments had been made by that Ministry.
Public Infrastructure Minster David Patterson attempted to intervene at this point but was prevented by Speaker of the National Assembly, Dr Barton Scotland who informed the House that the Indigenous People’s Affairs Minister was more than competent to field the questions herself.
Not satisfied with the forthcoming answers from the Minister, Speaker Dr Scotland informed Dharamlall that “I am not going to have this I am going to ask you to take your seat… That is the answer you must take… if you want a different answer you have to ask a different question.”
The unsatisfied Opposition member again questioned, “where is it, is it in a container, is it in a factory,” but was told by Minister Garrido-Lowe, “I have answered the member already.”
Heckling from his benches, PPP/C General Secretary Clement Rohee blurted in reference to the unaccounted for $500 million in solar equipment, “another scandal.”
The Minister told the House that the Telecommunications Ministry and the E-governance department are overseeing the entire country with regards to ICT.

Security service expenses
Another of the expenditures that attracted a lively debate in the House surrounded the recurrent expenditures and payments specifically for security services.
Opposition Member Dharamlall observed for the House that between 2015 and 2017 the allocations for security services for the Ministry has in fact increase five-fold from just about $12M to in excess of $66M.
Minister Gariddo-Lowe indicated to the House that the increase was in fact as a result of the Ministry having to rent a new building and will have to provide security.
Dharamlall insisted that the increase appeared outrageous and in seeking to provide an answer this time around, the Minister sought to explain the increase as catering for increased electricity charges at the Sophia Village.
The House eventually moved on to considering other items without an answer forthcoming.
The Members of the House heard too that the Indigenous People’s Affairs Minister has allocated as part of its 2017 expenditure, monies to cater for countrywide consultations for the revision of the Amerindian Act.
The House was at the time querying a $106 million – an increase from $36 million in 2015, for the Ministry Secretariat’s travelling.
Minster Garrido-Lowe informed the House that the Ministry will be catering for the increased consultation in addition to provisions for a legal officer, increased monitoring of community projects in addition to a consultancy for a women’s and children project.
Monies were also approved in the more than $2.4 billion Budgetary Allocations for 2017 to fund activities related to the National Toshaos Council, Heritage Month Activities, the Rupununi Rodeo and Music Festival, an ACTO Forum in addition to support to a number of indigenous sporting activities.