A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Member of Parliament (MP), Roysdale Forde says that while Budget 2021 is being touted by the government as one that will ensure the country recovers from trauma of the last five years, the economy under his party’s stewardship was in no way devastated.
Forde, during his budget presentation to the House this morning, said that the Senior Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh claims that a recovery is needed, but he needs to be brought up to speed with a “dose of reality”.
“Whilst he was sojourning, for the past five years, the economy has grown and flourished. In relation to the productive industries, only the sugar industry, contracted in the past four years due to the mismanagement of the sugar industry by the Peoples Progressive Party/Civic. A crisis which was inherited by the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change,” he said.
He noted that the other productive industries expanded, on average, in the past five years. Forde said that there was notable growth in other crops, gold, other mining and quarrying, petroleum and gas, and support services; rice manufacturing; electricity supply; accommodation and food services; financial and insurance activities; professional, scientific and technical services; and human health and social work.
“These expanded, on average, in the past 5 years, by 5.5 percent, 12.7 percent, 14.9 percent, 119.4 percent, 6 percent, 4.2 percent, 4.5 percent, 4 percent, 4.1 percent and 4.9 percent, respectively,” he told the House.
Further, the respective real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) level for each industry, from 2014 to 2019, increased, except for the sugar, forestry, and rice industries – which contracted by a mere 0.1 percent) – and sugar manufacturing.
He said noteworthy are the industries which recorded significant growth over the 2014 to 2019 period. These include other crops; livestock; gold; other mining and quarrying; petroleum and gas, and support services; rice manufacturing, electricity supply; water supply and sewerage; transport and storage; accommodation and food services; financial and insurance activities; professional, scientific and technical services; administrative and support services; public administration; and human health and social work.
“This could hardly be called a case for recovery from trauma. I know that the phenomenal growth and transformation of the economy would have been traumatic for the Senior Minister who has been coming to this Parliament for many years with all sorts of brews, devices and contraptions but just could not get the economy to perform,” Forde said.
