Polye: Hocus pocus 2015 budget

Caption:  Shadow Treasurer Don Polye (standing) addressing the house, with Treasurer Patrick Pruaitch seated looking on.

By MATTHEW VARI

Wednesday, November 26, 2014 (Midweek Chronicle, PNG)

IN its response to the National Government’s 2015 budget handed down last week, the Opposition in its response gave what it claimed was creative accounting by the O’Neill-Dion Government in the 2015 budget by its newly unveiled member to the opposition benches, THE Party Leader and Shadow Treasurer, Don Polye.

Mr Polye depicted the 2015 budget on the floor of Parliament as one that was an illusion to the people of the country that contradicted its aim for nation building and opportunity creation.

He labeled many decisions made in the budget made by individuals within government through its style of economic management that have been touted to rescue the country from trouble as lies- highlighting the 2014 expenditure which blew out beyond the K15.1 billion mark in the year.

“The Government is in direct contradiction to its budget motto of building up a nation and providing opportunities for our people through the allocation of a mere K730.8 million to the economic sector for a rise of only 5.9 percent, or K40.8 million from 2014,” Polye said.

“It is concerning to see the sector directly responsible for job creation and income earning- pushing rural SME business and empowering mums and dads participation in economic growth receiving low priority.”

“How do we encourage economic growth- with a massive increase of 15.1 percent growth and debt service K1.1 billion reveals the true focus of the 2015 budget and that is that it has been designed to reward corporate friends of government with the meat, while leaving the bones to the people of Papua New Guinea.”

Polye added that it would effectively cut off opportunities for women, children, youth, SMEs, agriculture, and tourism to not flourish.

“Here is a budget that conceals the real truth of the country’s total public debt that the O’Neill-Dion Government has committed the State into of a K19 billion (compared to government more than K14 billion estimate) total debt,” he said.

“This budget gives 150 percent tax rebates to cronies and friends at the suffering of the majority of small entrepreneur businesses and grassroots.”

“It takes the landowners wealth away, only to pay off unproductive loans like the UBS loan.”

“Here is a budget full of leering discrepancies, inconsistencies in figures, details, and spends more in non-priority areas,” added Polye.

He concluded that budget did not promote inclusive growth and placed more power under a few people.

The Shadow Treasurer also highlighted a major issue in the budget that was mentioned by many in the debate that the huge cuts in LLG funds were of a major concerned in terms of implementation in rural areas.

“Here is a budget that kills the survival and operations of LLGs in PNG by slashing K400,000 from their budget.”

“With a country with very sound macroeconomic policies like the vision 2015, NSDP, MTDP, and so forth- we have eroded them through this budget.”