The National Assembly yesterday approved a $7.9 billion supplementary appropriation which included $3.5 billion in funding for the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), $2 billion in funding for the Ministry of Public Infrastructure and $1.5 billion for the Ministry of Communities as well as several hundreds of millions in funding for the Ministries of Finance, Social Cohesion, Social Protection and National Security.
The Opposition People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) which has said that it would not be returning to the House until the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) rules on the validity of the December 21st no-confidence motion was once again absent.
Government parliamentarians used the opportunity to have a total of 25 new appropriations approved without objection.
As the CCJ decision looms the sums approved for GECOM are slated to “meet the additional cost of conducting general and regional elections” but Finance Minister Winston Jordan stressed that they were not being tabled in expectation of any particular verdict.
The sums, he said, have been tabled and passed in keeping with a promise made to the GECOM Chairman by President David Granger before the matter went to the CCJ.
“Irrespective of the ruling of the CCJ these monies would be available to the elections commission for them to start preparing for the elections proper,” Jordan stressed, noting that this allocation added to the $5.4 billion already allocated to GECOM for 2019 means that nearly $9 billion is being spent on the upcoming election.
Initially $2.9 billion of the total sum allocated was earmarked for 2020 poll preparations, which, if not for the December 21 no-confidence motion, would be constitutionally due by August next year. In addition, $3.36 billion was allocated for house-to-house registration, scheduled to begin this year.
In total GECOM which has been allocated $4,893,061,000 for current expenditure had requested an additional $3,314,152,155 but received $3,300,000,000.
Of that sum $113,491,000 is allocated for training while $409,586,200 is allocated for transport and travel.
Also approved was an additional $182,344,000 in Capital funds, the full sum requested by the agency.
Capital Expenditure according to the estimates tabled includes the purchase of several vehicles such as boats to traverse the interior locations during the conduct of Regional and General Elections. Also provided for is the purchase of furniture and equipment as well as an upgrade of Multiple Identity Document Issuing System (MIDIS)
The upgrade of the MIDIS will according to GECOM lead to the production of better quality Identification Cards and more upgraded equipment which will reduce machine downtime
Notably at least $49.3 million of the sum requested under Capital Expenditure related to items “required for House to House registration”
Long gone
Meanwhile, Minister of Public Infrastructure David Patterson declared to the House that the “days of bridges collapsing and wharfs disappearing are long gone.”
“We are being proactive,” he argued as he asked the House to approve $2,028,592,992 in additional expenditure for his ministry which has already been allocated $15,575,910,000 in Current and Capital Funds.
Included in the new sums allocated is $160 million for the emergency construction of sea defences in the Prospect, Mahaicony area.
According to Patterson the additional resources are required to address an emergency situation that requires the construction of a rip rap sea defence structure to prevent flooding to vast agricultural lands used for rice cultivation and cattle rearing.
“Recent high tide events have caused erosion of approximately 325 metres of earthen embankment and mangroves,” he told the House.
The Minister also sought and received $50 million for urgent rehabilitation of roads and bridges along the Lethem-Hiawa-Nappi corridor, $150 million for the construction and rehabilitation of community roads in Regions 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, $500 million for the construction and rehabilitation of roads and drains in urban areas and $40.8 million for the rehabilitation of access bridges at Bella Dam and Little Diamond.
He explained that at Bella Dam beams had been damaged while in Little Diamond urgent works had been prioritized.
Nothing is static
“The 2019 Budget catered for the repair of four major bridges but nothing is static and since that budget was prepared in August 2018 these works have become necessary,” the Minister noted.
His ministry also received $400 million for rehabilitation to improve the safety, reliability and seaworthiness of several vessels namely the M.L Allan Young, M.L Thompson, M.L Setter and M.T Aruka.
Other allocations approved included $1,494,000,000 for the Ministry of Communities, $200 million of which was allocated for the upgrading of “aged” sewerage and water infrastructure in Georgetown.
According to Minister of Communities Ronald Bulkan several cast iron and asbestos mains have become prone to leakages and breakages which interrupt supply. As a result the ministry has allocated for the replacement of the trunk mains along Church Street.
“The Church Street trunk mains replacement is critical since maintenance effort has failed to preserve this more than 100 year old system, which suffers from frequent disruptions,” the House was told. A total of $100 million was allocated for this particular project.
Of the remaining $100 million, $40 million was allocated for the installation of mains in Albouystown and 60 million for the drilling of a well at Central Ruimveldt.
Bulkan explained that the Central Ruimveldt Water Treatment Plant does not have the capacity to serve the communities of West Ruimveldt, Alexander Village, South Ruimveldt and surrounding areas on a 24- hour basis.
The proposed well is expected to provide this capacity while the transmission and distribution main project in Albouystown will complement an ongoing project which started in a section of the village to remove old asbestos mains. It also includes over 500 service connections to households.
