Halting expenditure on “roll over projects” would obstruct economy

Jan 14, 2015 News

– Minister Benn

Minister of Public Works, Robeson Benn during a recently televised programme on Channel 11, the National Communications Network (NCN) under the heading, “The Political Scope” opined that to stop spending on roll over projects from 2014 into 2015, would result in the economy reaching “a state of constipation”.
He also touched on other matters such as the US$50M loan from India to fund the East Bank-East Coast of Demerara road link and a ferry to be used in the North West District area.

Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn

The Minister was specifically asked to comment on the recent statements by the British High Commissioner, Andrew Ayre, that Guyana currently operating with a prorogued parliament would in effect reduce the appetite of the United Kingdom to provide funding for the country.
Benn who was brief on that matter eventually trailed off into providing comments on what the government is constitutionally allowed to spend and the importance of allowing certain expenditures on developmental projects which would have rolled over into the New Year.
“When it (parliament) goes to suspension there isn’t oversight, the reasons we had prorogation have been said and are very well known, and they are understandable. In any event, the time period in which a parliament could be recalled is very short, so I don’t know if the High Commissioner is perhaps overlapping or seeing the possibility is inevitable with respect to recalling to Parliament, because it has to be recalled in any event for the budget.”
Benn added, “From the first day of the year in January 2015 until the budget is read, the government… the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh, can only spend one-twelfth of the current account budget with respect to expenditure of the government. It can’t spend anything more than that…and the only other expenditure would be roll over 2014 projects, and this is normal from one year to the next which continues, and if you stop spending on roll over projects the economy gets constipated, people don’t get work and you start to lose work and building projects fall away, and you may have to start laying off people, not only in the commercial areas …But the expenditures are defined in the budget and it is there for anyone to see or review, even the UK High Commissioner.”
The joint opposition – A Partnership for National Unity and the Alliance For Change – has accused the government of abusing the Treasury and withholding monies from the national coffers, siphoning off funds from multi-million dollar projects, selling shares of the extractive industries to foreigners and granting concessions to certain businesses that would lead to unfair competition and the eventual death of small businesses along with a barrage of other damning and scandalous accusations.
Benn categorically stated that he believes that the allegations leveled against the government by the political opposition are unfounded and to that realm they will remain.
He said that since the debates over corruption in the nation between the government and the opposition, there hasn’t been one single charge on any government official or a single contention that can stand up in the courts.
“There have been all kinds of accusations in the Kaieteur News, social media, and Stabroek News…there isn’t a smoking gun and there is no gun…there have been the efforts to make us look bad, harass us, to make us give up hope, and irrespective of the struggle, we have brought Guyana from below the zero line to at least six percent growth (and) there is hidden growth that we might have not been able to account for and it’s something that has never occurred before in the history of our country,” the Minister said.
He then called on the citizenry to look at the work of the government dispassionately for he believes that the PPP/C this time around will do better.