Two of the representatives of Indigenous peoples in the National Assembly yesterday clashed over just what the 2017 national budget would mean for their constituents.
During the debate on the proposed budget, Minister within the Ministry of Indigenous People’s Affairs Valerie Garrido-Lowe told the house that the reduction of Value-Added Tax (VAT) to 14% “is nothing less than an act of compassion.”
Garrido-Lowe declared, “Mr Speaker, this alone will have a significant effect across the whole country, bringing great relief to the ordinary people of this country, who had to fetch the burden of VAT since its inception. And to the residents of the hinterland regions, this is like the fairy godfather waving his wand.”
