President Irfaan Ali has sought to dispel claims of his party discriminating against some communities and administrative regions in its development programmes. The President was at the time addressing the opening of the People’s Progressive Party’s 32nd Congress at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre this morning.
He outlined increased budgetary allocations to every administrative region since his Government assumed office in 2020.
“We practice what we preach – One People, One Future, One Country. In Region One, the allocation increased by 146%; Region Two by 119%; Region Three by 132%; Region Four by 92%; Region Five by 73%; Region Six by 101%; Region Seven by 155%; Region Eight by 166%; Region Nine by 127%; Region 10 by 187% – where is the discrimination,” the President questioned.
He added that the participation at the congress showcases the inclusiveness of the party with representation from all ethnicities and regions across the country.
The last PPP Congress was hosted in 2016 while the party was in opposition. Ali told delegates, observers and other invitees that the last Congress provided a space to thoroughly examine the weaknesses of the party and realign itself with more confidence.
“This is the strongest the People’s Progressive Party has ever been and this is something we should celebrate,” he noted.
This is Ali’s first term in office and he has signalled his intention to run for a second term. The work done since he assumed office in 2020 to present was lauded by Vice President and General Secretary of the PPP, Bharrat Jagdeo.
Jagdeo in his remarks said; “Irfaan Ali is one of the most courageous persons I’ve ever met and also in my tenure, he was one of the most efficient Ministers we’ve had. He could’ve handled large-scale tasks easily and you see he brought that into Government because of his dynamic, energetic leadership now.”
Ali served as Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce as well as Housing and Water prior to 2015. However, when he was named the PPP’s Presidential Candidate in 2015, many people questioned his ability to function as President.
In this regard, Jagdeo said, “We had many nay-sayers when we chose Irfaan Ali and thank you for proving all of them wrong.”
