Govt willing to engage all stakeholders on budget 2013

Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh said the ruling People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) government will no longer stand idly by and allow the other opposition political parties to practise double standards.

Dr Singh, speaking at a live televised press conference on Saturday, chided the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) for seeking to mislead the media by painting a distorted picture of the proceedings of the tripartite budget talks and discussions, which are occurring behind closed doors.
“I don’t believe that such pronouncements, trying to prejudice the public perception of the nature of the discussion, such an attempt by the opposition is helpful to an open and frank discussion that is built around trust and mutual confidence. It leads me to the inevitable conclusion that the opposition is not interested in a meaningful engagement on issues of importance, but instead is interested in political gimmickry and I can indeed arrive at no other conclusion. If one were interested in an open and frank discussion, then one would not attempt to prejudice the discussions by introducing such negativity, but instead what we see by the opposition immediately after every meeting is political grandstanding and photo opportunities in an attempt to score cheap political points.”
He maintained that the government values greatly its engagement with stakeholders and it approaches such engagements with “an open mind”.
“We are willing to listen to views, happy to respond to those views by sharing our own perspectives on the issues of interest, welcoming any suggestions that are made, and willing to interrogate those suggestions. We are willing to explore their practicability for implementation and we see great value in such an engagement with non-governmental stakeholders and in particular with the parliamentary opposition parties.
“I believe that if two groups or three groups will meet in earnest to address a matter of national interest, then there must be good faith in that engagement, there must be a willingness to listen; there must be a willingness to be open-minded, like I said, this has been the approach of the government,” the minister disclosed.
According to Dr Singh, at the last tripartite meeting, he pointed out that such pronouncements which introduce scepticism about whether particular suggestions would be included or not, were not helpful to the discussions.
The minister emphasised that the discussions have been cordial and kept in good faith as the ruling administration understands their role and responsibility with respect to ensuring that Guyana’s macroeconomic and social interests are maintained and further advanced.
He also explained that this year’s budget, which has the usual ingredient of compromise, will offer Guyanese more goods and services, improved health care services and a better standard of living.