Georgetown: The Government’s decision to increase the salaries of the Prime Minister, Ministers, Members of Parliament and the Opposition’s yearly allocation, has been described by President David Granger as an investment in efficiency, quality and good governance.
Speaking at the recording of the Ministry of the Presidency’s “Public Interest” programme today, President David Granger said that while the decision was a difficult one, it decided on in the best interest of the country.
“As far as the salary increases are concerned, we had to make some choices, and choices were made in order to assure the public of the efficiency and commitment of the Ministers … It was a difficult choice in the first place. It was not something that we did recklessly. We had to consider all of the options and in the final analysis we felt that this was the best means of ensuring that the work of the Cabinet would continue,” he said.
The Head of State added that in order to attract the best qualified people to serve at this level, certain sacrifices have to be made.
“Many of the members were professionals and some came from private enterprises. We are trying to ensure that the coalition’s Cabinet is such that there is a high level of efficiency. The changes have been an investment in quality governance,” President Granger told the journalists on the panel.
While there are criticisms, President Granger said that he is confident that in time to come, Guyanese will see the merits of regularising and upgrading the income of the country’s senior officials.
“I am aware of the criticisms but we have to make choices every day and the choice was made in favor of having a stronger Cabinet and allowing those persons who have been selected to fulfill their functions and I am confident that this will be done. In the middle term, I believe people will see that as a good decision… I believe that in time to come, evidence would emerge that we made the correct decision,” he said.
President Granger noted that it is now his job to ensure that his Cabinet does the work that is necessary to bring about transformative change in Guyana. He also urged all Guyanese to continue to hold their leaders’ feet to the fire to ensure that they serve the country well.
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