Georgetown: Minutes after Finance Minister Winston Jordan made his 2016 budget presentation, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo labeled the budget “anti-poor, anti-development and disappointing”.
The opposition leader decried the $230 Billion financial plan and lambasted the theme noting that there was no guarantee for the restoration or stimulation of the economy.
He said there was a huge disconnect between the budgeted programs and policies and there stated objectives.
“These measures are not designed to help poor people… pensioners are poor under this government that they were under the PPP government, there is absolutely nothing in the budget for poor people,” Jagdeo, a former President and Finance Minister in the past People’s Progressive Party government, said. Underscoring that he was not impressed with the measures outlined in the budget, he the new tax measures will put undue pressure on the population and “is a lazy way of collecting taxes and going after tax defrauders.”
Jagdeo said the Private Sector is likely to lose further confidence in the economy since more pressure is applied on them with little to stimulate growth. “If I had to look at how this would change people’s lives, people will have retrogression in their lives. The good life can’t start with this budget.”
He accused Minister Jordan of engaging in several instances of repackaging measures that were presented in previous PPP budgets. He also accused the Minister of inflating the numbers in his projections for 2016. “They would have been better off if they had a serious discussion with us to find out where we were taking the country,” Jagdeo lamented.
However, Jagdeo was happy with the reexamination with the Amaila Falls Hydro Power Project, the CJIA expansion project and the Specialty Hospital which were all initiated by the PPP government.
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