Singh to Granger: Tell Greenidge to come to the budget talks

Finance Minister Dr Ashni Singh on Monday urged Opposition Leader David Granger to instruct his point man on finance Carl Greenidge to find the time to conclude the budget consultation, and quit the threats to cut the budget.
Granger was quoted in the Stabroek News on Monday as saying that despite the limited impact from the budget cuts last year, the opposition will cut expenditures that are “unlawful” or do not conform to financial regulations. He said, according to the newspaper report, the opposition also plans to appeal a ruling by acting Chief Justice Ian Chang, that the National Assembly does not have the power to cut the budget.

Following the 2012 budget cuts by the opposition, Attorney General Anil Nandlall had moved to the courts and Justice Chang, in an interim ruling, said that the National Assembly did not have the power to cut the budget, but the court could not restore the funding sought by government, except for allocations to the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), which is a constitutional agency and entitled to draw directly from the Consolidated Fund.
In a Government Information Agency (GINA) issued release, Dr Singh expressed the opinion that the opposition leader should instruct Greenidge, his shadow finance minister, to make himself available for the budget talks, rather than to make threats to cut a budget he has not yet seen and to impose sanctions for offences that have not been committed.
No word from Greenidge
Minister Singh on Sunday had disclosed that government has been waiting since late February for Greenidge to indicate when he would be available to meet with the government, having previously requested a postponement of a meeting scheduled by government for February 28. Since then, Greenidge has failed to indicate when he would be available to have follow-up discussions with government.

“What ultimately matters is for Guyana to be put first, not for APNU to show its political might by repeatedly threatening to cut the budget or to sanction a minister unjustifiably, simply because its AFC-enabled one-seat majority gives it the power to do so. The whole country already knows that APNU, aided and abetted by the AFC, has a majority in Parliament. What the country now wants to know is whether this majority will be used to work constructively with government to advance development, or whether it will be used to frustrate government and stymie progress. That is what the people want to know and what the people are waiting to see come Budget 2013,” Minister Singh added.
AFC warned
Dr Singh has had cause to respond to a similar threat by AFC leader Khemraj Ramjattan. Singh had said it would be sensible for the AFC to see the budget first before passing judgment, expressing “hope that the opposition will judge the budget on its merit and not act on the capricious, partisan politically-motivated manner.”
The minister said this year’s budget will build on the previous estimates, which were slashed by the opposition in 2012, as “it will emphasise continued growth in the economy, diversification of our productive sector, including modernisation of the traditional sectors, accelerated growth in new and emerging sectors and investment in infrastructure”