Budget 2025 focused on equitable development, improving livelihoods – MP Smith

Despite having to right the wrongs and repair the damage imposed on Guyana’s economy during the APNU+AFC government’s tenure in office, the PPP/C government has managed to consistently pilot initiatives to deliver a secure, prosperous and sustainable future for the country.

This was emphasised by Member of Parliament Dr Tandika Smith, who joined other government MPs and cabinet members in support of the $1.38 trillion national budget, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre on Tuesday.

She dismissed the opposition’s criticisms of the budget, underscoring that it contains comprehensive measures catering to every man, woman and child, unlike the previous government’s allocations.

“It was the poor and ordinary man who got nothing under the APNU+AFC. I am still yet to find one measure that was implemented to place money in the pockets of the small man. I instead found that out that even the man operating a donkey cart had to pay heavy taxes. The persons with the kitchen garden, with more than three plants and multiple poultry animals, had to pay taxes. These were the inhumane and callous measures meted out to the vulnerable people of this country,” she recalled.

Commending Budget 2025, Dr Smith pointed to the $100,000 one-off cash grant for every Guyanese, the $10,000 universal health care voucher, and the increase in the tax threshold, which removes 22,000 persons from the tax bracket.

According to the MP, this budget is yet another tool to advance the government’s agenda of ensuring that every Guyanese lives a life of dignity, while building a solid foundation  for generations to come.

Specifically addressing the health sector, MP Smith reminded that when the government assumed office in 2020, in addition to the billions of dollars worth of expired drugs and medical supplies discovered, there was no comprehensive plan in place to protect citizens from the COVID-19 virus.

“No new hospitals or health centers were built. There were no new health policies in place,” she bemoaned.

Today, she noted, that six new hospitals are under construction, and a host of health programmes are in place, such as the grants to support dialysis patients. Pensioners and school-aged children now benefit from spectacles vouchers, and women aged 21-65 can now access free cervical cancer screening through the vouchers being provided by the government.

“Budget 2025 will see a continuation of massive development in this sector,” she said.

The member of parliament further highlighted the government’s focus on expanding access to education and supporting the academic and professional development of Guyanese students and teachers.

“To my fellow young people, it is important to note that you are living in one of the best time in Guyana’s history. The PPP/C government will return to government and continue to work assiduously towards the development of all of Guyana,” she asserted.