Opposition squares up against Budget

THE official opposition, the Congress of Democrats, joined by the DTA, yesterday trashed Government’s assertions that the 2006-07 National Budget is pro-poor and pro-growth.

If it was pro-poor and pro-growth, CoD MP Tsudao Gurirab said, it would do more to empower ordinary Namibians to acquire the skills and assets needed to drive the economy. “Where is the evidence that this is a pro-poor, pro-growth Budget?” Gurirab asked.Gurirab said it was evident that the gap between rich and poor was growing and that Namibians were poorer now than they had ever been.The CoD welcomed the proposed N$70 increase in pensions, more money to register orphans and vulnerable children and plans to roll out HIV-AIDS prevention programmes.However, it reminded the House that in fact Government was not spending much of its own resources to boost its healthcare aims and that much of its intended achievements would be dependent on donor funding.”The Budget has very little for the common woman on the street,” Gurirab said.”Prosperity will come from empowerment…to invest, invest, invest in skills appropriate for driving our economy.Not diplomas in public administration.People are poor because they have no assets.”Gurirab said that any growth Namibia attained in the coming financial year would come from its traditional sources of income such as mining and not as a result of any Government policy.Gurirab said Government had not shown through the proposed Budget that it was committed to the aims of last year’s Cabinet retreat to uplift the rural poor.He also criticised Government for repeatedly failing to meet the fiscal targets it sets itself.Gurirab said Government had shown no resolve on curbing its spending habits and that little of the revenue it planned to generate during the new financial year was of its own making.To this end, he appealed to the Minister of Finance to strengthen the ability of the office of the Receiver of Revenue so that it could continue to reap the maximum benefit from taxation and that the N$600 million it had earned in the last financial year through audits would not be a one-off occurrence.The CoD said it was unimpressed by the surplus Government says it is expected to produce, saying that it was largely as a result of unspent money on capital projects during the current financial year.The DTA joined the fray, criticising Government’s claims that the Budget would uplift the poor and drive growth, arguing that Government’s spending priorities indicated otherwise.The DTA’s McHenry Venaani said Government was spending “impulsively” and not necessarily on projects that would immediately bring about growth.”The Minister termed her budget pro-poor, poor growth, but she in my opinion failed to critically address the question of tackling direct poverty and activities that would grow the economy,” said Venaani.He said Government had failed in coming close to creating the number of jobs it has promised.Venaani said in principle the DTA was not against the building of a new State House or the northern railway, for example, but that the timing was off and the money being spent was too much.He said the potential markets to benefit from the railway connectivity had not yet been developed and that instead Government should first focus on getting these going.Minister without Portfolio Ngarikutuke Tjiriange maintained that proper infrastructure would encourage investment in Namibia, while Minister of Works Joel Kaapanda said that along with the Walvis Bay harbour, the railway would encourage the transport of goods through Namibia.”I’m not objecting to the railway line.I’m not objecting to infrastructure.The railway line in the South will be put to good use,” said Venaani.Venaani also criticised the Finance Minister for not introducing cost-cutting measures.The party praised Government’s resolve to root out corruption by allocating N$6,5 million to the Anti-Corruption Commission.But it said the poor performance of parastatals was still a cause for concern, as was their meagre contribution to the State coffers.The DTA suggested that Government seriously consider the privatisation of some SOEs.”The time is now, in my opinion, to start a serious effort of diversifying and expanding our economy by carefully and cautiously implementing a privatisation process through strategic alliances with private partners,” said Venaani.He was of the opinion that Air Namibia and Namibia Wildlife Resorts should dispose of at least 75 per cent of their ownership.”Where is the evidence that this is a pro-poor, pro-growth Budget?” Gurirab asked.Gurirab said it was evident that the gap between rich and poor was growing and that Namibians were poorer now than they had ever been.The CoD welcomed the proposed N$70 increase in pensions, more money to register orphans and vulnerable children and plans to roll out HIV-AIDS prevention programmes.However, it reminded the House that in fact Government was not spending much of its own resources to boost its healthcare aims and that much of its intended achievements would be dependent on donor funding.”The Budget has very little for the common woman on the street,” Gurirab said.”Prosperity will come from empowerment…to invest, invest, invest in skills appropriate for driving our economy.Not diplomas in public administration.People are poor because they have no assets.”Gurirab said that any growth Namibia attained in the coming financial year would come from its traditional sources of income such as mining and not as a result of any Government policy.Gurirab said Government had not shown through the proposed Budget that it was committed to the aims of last year’s Cabinet retreat to uplift the rural poor.He also criticised Government for repeatedly failing to meet the fiscal targets it sets itself.Gurirab said Government had shown no resolve on curbing its spending habits and that little of the revenue it planned to generate during the new financial year was of its own making.To this end, he appealed to the Minister of Finance to strengthen the ability of the office of the Receiver of Revenue so that it could continue to reap the maximum benefit from taxation and that the N$600 million it had earned in the last financial year through audits would not be a one-off occurrence.The CoD said it was unimpressed by the surplus Government says it is expected to produce, saying that it was largely as a result of unspent money on capital projects during the current financial year.The DTA joined the fray, criticising Government’s claims that the Budget would uplift the poor and drive growth, arguing that Government’s spending priorities indicated otherwise.The DTA’s McHenry Venaani said Government was spending “impulsively” and not necessarily on projects that would immediately bring about growth.”The Minister termed her budget pro-poor, poor growth, but she in my opinion failed to critically address the question of tackling direct poverty and activities that would grow the economy,” said Venaani.He said Government had failed in coming close to creating the number of jobs it has promised.Venaani said in principle the DTA was not against the building of a new State House or the northern railway, for example, but that the timing was off and the money being spent was too much.He said the potential markets to benefit from the railway connectivity had not yet been developed and that instead Government should first focus on getting these going.Minister without Portfolio Ngarikutuke Tjiriange maintained that proper infrastructure would encourage investment in Namibia, while Minister of Works Joel Kaapanda said that along with the Walvis Bay harbour, the railway would encourage the transport of goods through Namibia.”I’m not objecting to the railway line.I’m not objecting to infrastructure.The railway line in the South will be put to good use,” said Venaani.Venaani also criticised the Finance Minister for not introducing cost-cutting measures.The party praised Government’s resolve to root out corruption by allocating N$6,5 million to the Anti-Corruption Commission.But it said the poor performance of parastatals was still a cause for concern, as was their meagre contribution to the State coffers.The DTA suggested that Government seriously consider the privatisation of some SOEs.”The time is now, in my opinion, to start a serious effort of diversifying and expanding our economy by carefully and cautiously implementing a privatisation process through strategic alliances with private partners,” said Venaani.He was of the opinion that Air Namibia and Namibia Wildlife Resorts should dispose of at least 75 per cent of their ownership.