Governance and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Gail Teixeira has stated that the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has always been rescuing Guyana from the deteriorating hands of the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), and has always been taking the country forward.
Teixeira made these remarks on Friday in her presentation on the Budget 2022 Debates.
Recalling the state of affairs under the PNC rule and its A Partnership for National Unity avatar which led the APNU/AFC Coalition regime, Minister Teixeira posited that the party has consistently put Guyana on the map for its actions, ranging from ethnic violence to rigged elections in the mid to late 1900s, and more recently global notoriety for the impasse after the March 2020 General and Regional Elections.
She said the action of the PNC has consistently been anti-national and anti-patriotic.
“Its stance has been: if they are not in Government, nothing must work; if they are in Government, still nothing works. But, Mr Speaker, when they are out of Government, obstructionism is the name of the game. They must make sure to try to destabilise and destroy things… [But] not this time; it ain’t happening this time. Ironically, Mr Speaker, it is the PPP each time in Government, precolonial and post-Independence, that has taken Guyana forward, never backward.
“Always, the PPP has had to rescue our country from the abyss of economic decline, and brought in progressive pro-poor policies and programmes,” the Governance Minister stated.
She noted that in 2014 Guyana was still climbing out of that economic abyss, and after five years of the PNC-led APNU/AFC in office from 2015, their tax-based development approach, squandermania, anti-people policies dragged the country down once again.
“We, the PPP/C, are here again, and this time we ain’t backing down. We shall transform our country with the oil revenues as a platform or the means to improve the quality of the lives of our people, expand and diversify our economy, and transform the landscape of our nation,” the Minister asserted.
Teixeira posited that the $552.9 billion Budget 2022 lays the foundation and establishes framework through which the development of the country can move forward to enhance the welfare of people.
The Governance Minister used the opportunity to remind that the Coalition regime’s mismanagement of the country’s resources had left significant declines in its reserves at the Central Bank by the end of its term.
However, she contended that Guyana and the PPP/C Government will not be held back by the APNU/AFC Opposition.
“Finally, we can breathe. We’ve come out of 2020 August… Finally, after 5 five years, we can work as a nation to build a new Guyana, a ‘One Guyana’ built on inclusivity, participation, transparency, accountability, and the rule of law,” she noted.
Teixeira went on to outline the fundamental difference between the PNC and its Coalition partners and the PPP/C on developing Guyana. Theirs, she added, is focused on a tax-based, consumer-driven expenditure with party paramountcy, ethnic division, and opportunistic, cavalier use of the Constitution.
In contrast, the Governance Minister said, the PPP/C’s philosophy is one of pro-growth and pro-poor people-centred development agenda with a climate-resilient policy of an expanded Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), rule of law and ‘One Guyana’ initiative.
“This Government has a different style of governance. Our Ministers are visible, accessible in communities across the country… The PPP/C, since coming to office, has been fixing the damage done by the five years of the PNC-led APNU/AFC Coalition Government in the 2020 and 2021 Budgets. It is time now to transform Guyana,” she stressed.
According to Teixeira, the people of Guyana are confident in, and trust the PPP/C to deliver its manifesto plans and promises – something that is already being undertaken.
“We have a social pact with the People of Guyana – and not just those who voted for us, but all the people of Guyana – that we will deliver… We are committed, and people are seeing right before their eyes, physically, that things are changing,” the Minister stated.
She continued that Guyana has a golden opportunity now, and the PPP/C Government intends to grasp it. The Governance Minister further noted that the Opposition has a choice now: whether to join in this path or be left behind.
“The country is alive. There is an energy and vitality in the country that is palpable. Guyana is back on track… Guyana is now on the move, and there is nothing stopping us now to achieve the transformation of our country. Those who wish to remain narrow-minded and small-minded will be left behind, because our people want development. They want to see Guyana go forward. They are tired of being left back… They want to move forward, and so the Opposition has a choice – join the whole process of transforming the country, or be left out in the woodwork by yourself, because history will judge you,” Teixeira contended.
