Opposition queries 89% increase for contract workers

By William Walker
Stabroek News
April 11, 2000


The parliamentary opposition queried the large increases in allocation for contract employees, when the House got down to the more mundane consideration of budgetary estimates yesterday, following last week's lively exchanges.

Under the budget for the Office of the President there is an allocation of $12.4 million for such workers, up from $4.9 million in 1999. Dunstan Barrow of the PNC said this reflected a policy decision by the government which it was not authorised to follow. While the government talked about voluntary separation and retrenchment the bill for contract employees had shot up by 89%, Barrow observed.

Minister of Public Service, George Fung-On, tried to explain to Barrow that the employees were on a three-year contract until the market conditions improve "It is no mystery," he said.

Barrow confessed to being more confused than ever and repeated that "the government was not authorized to use contract employees." Fung-On rejoined, "I can only explain to him... I don't think I can make him understand."

Barrow then quizzed Amerindian Affairs Minister, Vibert De Souza, on the amount allocated under "dietary". He wanted to know how much it cost for breakfast, lunch and dinner for each resident of the Amerindian Hostel. De Souza did not oblige, but said there was a fluctuating population at the hostel of anywhere from 40 to 80 persons. Barrow persisted that the ministry must have calculated the cost per meal to come up with the estimate, but De Souza told him to put the request in writing.

Sixty-five million dollars were earmarked under capital expenditure for the Amerindian Development Fund. De Souza explained that this was in part for land demarcation and for heritage month and other celebrations. Barrow observed it was the first time he had heard of celebrations being classified as a capital work. Similarly, an enquiry into a capital expenditure of $25 million entitled "other" was explained away by Works Minister, Anthony Xavier, as something to do with the President paying for the burial of the persons involved in a recent mini bus accident and for the passage for the boxers to attend the Olympic Trials. "But those are not capital works!" Barrow protested.

The answers by the ministers did not appear to satisfy Barrow and he objected that the House had been previously informed that 80% of ministries were on programme budgeting and as such the ministers must have lists of the projects the monies were allocated for and would have known that these questions were to be asked. He wondered whether the figures were "just plucked out of thin air." Xavier respectfully asked that he be allowed to return tomorrow with written answers to the more detailed questions.

Barrow also asked what was the authorised strength of the Guyana Defence Force. When the government members objected, he asked whether it was such a secret. He asked how much it cost to feed a soldier per day as the estimate had a whopping $185 million under "dietary".

Xavier confirmed that "the government takes care of its army" and clarified some of the questions raised by Manzoor Nadir about work done on the Coast Guard building. One hundred and sixty-three million dollars classified as "Other" was attributed in part to maintenance of the regimental band and for sporting clothes and equipment.

Minister of Home Affairs, Ronald Gajraj, said he would return tomorrow with an explanation of the $1 billion allocated under "other" for the Elections Commission.

Nadir made a general comment that the budget estimated the purchase of 40 computers. He had noticed that they ranged in cost from $500,000 to $1 million and suggested that considerable savings could be accrued from the centralised purchase of such equipment.

Other questions asked but not addressed included the cost to Go-Invest to negotiate with Beal Aerospace and the extent to which the Amerindian land demarcation programme has proceeded.