OPINION: President Irfaan Ali’s Operational Code, and Budget 2024

Last Updated on Wednesday, 24 January 2024, 5:30 by Denis Chabrol

By Dr. Randy Persaud, Professor Emeritus

The $1.146 trillion budget presented by Senior Minister in the Office of the President with Responsibility for Finance, is testimony to President Ali’s commitment to broaden, deepen, and quicken the pace of economic and social development in Guyana.

Anyone who has listened to Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali since he took office in August 2020 should know that he has the following non-negotiable policy positions –

(1) to build a Guyana free of discrimination of any sort.

(2) develop and put into practice economic policies that are sustainable on both the economic and environmental fronts.

(3) diversify the economy in ways that would push back against the pressures of Dutch Disease.

(4) build infrastructure throughout the country that would last for generations, that is, well beyond the near-term benefits of the oil & gas boom.

(5) pay particular attention to food security since this is the most fundamental dimension of human development.

(6) improve the quality of life by making health care universally available and affordable.

(7) develop the human capital of Guyanese citizens and residents through robust education and training programs.

(8) support youth, sports and culture in order to enhance a fit, engaged, and self-reflective nation, and,

(9) build the domestic and national security capacity of the nation to ensure that people and property, as well as our territorial integrity are guaranteed.

All these commitments have been expressed in the language of One Guyana. Together, these aims, objectives, commitments, and policies constitute what might be best described as President Mohamed Irfaan Ali’s Operational Code. As used here, Operational Code refers to the philosophical and general value system that inform the strategies and policies of a political leader, in this case President Ali.

Budget 2024 is a path towards the actualization of what are, at first cut, aspirational values. This is something that the political opposition and many in the media and civil society do not sufficiently appreciate. Judging by their response in Parliament to Budget 2024, the APNU-AFC to date have not shown any real understanding of the central animating principles of President Ali Operational Code, or of PPP’s values and beliefs.

Yesterday, Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan presented his response to Budget 2024. Ramjattan can be thoughtful and reflective and has the capacity to offer perspectives that are worth contemplating. He had the perfect opportunity to engage the nation with something to consider through an informed critique of the PPP’s budget. But, as always, the path chosen was one marked by erudition rather than clarity, condemnation rather than critique, inflammatory and bombastic gyrations rather than a studied refutation based on research, comparative analysis grounded in time-series data, or technical evaluations of key, high-priced projects.

Or how about Roysdale Forde response? Well, if Ramjattan’s was short on facts but long on inculpation, Forde’s was more like a long, languishing ritual. Mr. Forde did not present even the most minimally acceptable policy critique of Budget 2024. Nor did he offer any meaningful engagement with the Weltanschauung (worldview) of President Ali’s aspirational commitments (One Guyana), or with his policy priorities as expressed in Budget 2024. Apart from the predictable soundbites, the only point worthy of review is Forde’s charge about trickle-down economics. But even here, we are just given the words, with no substance in attendance.

Trickle-down economics is, of course, linked to the policies developed by President Reagan and Margaret Thatcher in the late 1970’s and through the 1980s. The key features are tax cuts for the wealthy, roll back of benefits for the poor, and removal of regulations that constrict economic growth, something deemed beneficial for the wealthier sections of society. Trickle-down economics were first theorised and advocated by the Austrian School when writers such as Ludwig von Mises and his student Frederick von Hayek developed the core of monetarism or supply-side economics. The Chicago School (of Economics) made later contributions, and Milton Freidman became a household name in America and elsewhere. The Mont Pelerin Society was formed to advance the ideas of trickle-down economics, and when Ronald Reagan became president, he set about reconfiguring the post-1945 American economy which was principally based on various forms of Keynesianism. More latterly, trickle-down economics is widely associated with neoliberal globalization. Among other things, neoliberal globalization emphasizes the commodification of all goods and especially services hitherto provided by the state.

Now, if Mr. Forde is to be taken seriously, he must do the following – (a) specify the attributes of trickle-down economics; (b) show how President Ali’s political economy of sustainable development and livelihoods aimed at human development is philosophically in sync with those attributes; (c) clearly identify the policies and SHOW HOW those same policies contribute to rolling back the quality of life in Guyana. Forde did none of this.

For Mr. Forde’s benefit, let me take note of the following policies, all of which contradict trickle-down economics – (1) Unconditional and free medical care for all; (2) a firm commitment with current (Budget 2024) plans for universal free education; (3) highly subsidized house lots and houses for all sectors of the population; (4) government led and negotiated preferred mortgage rates based on income level; (5) government negotiated or facilitated lower interest rates for small businesses; (6) free comprehensive eye, ear, and mental health testing for all school children, (7) free textbooks for all students; (8) thousands of scholarships for higher education; (9) new government built highways without tolls; and among others, (10) a carbon-neutral strategy to ensure ecological security and biodiversity preservation.

Forde and Ramjattan have it wrong. Instead of a budget based on trickle-down economics, President Ali’s administration has presented a budget that is based on human security and human development. Budget 2024 brings to life the fundamental philosophical assumptions and the social ontology from which the PPP operates.

Professor Persaud is Adviser, International Affairs, Office of the President.