Norton promises all public servants yearly bonus

Last Updated on Monday, 18 March 2024, 22:35 by Denis Chabrol

Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton

Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton on Sunday promised public servants across Guyana an annual one-month bonus if his coalition of A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) wins next year’s general and regional elections

Departing from the APNU+AFC administration’s scrapping of the one-month bonus for members of the Disciplined Services, Mr Norton said if the coalition is returned to office, it would pay an extra month’s salary to all government employees. “Let me tell you what the APNU+AFC would do in future. We will ensure that the army, the police, the Joint Services continue to get the one-month bonus but will extend it to all public servants,” he told hundreds of supporters at a public meeting in Region 10.

He defended the then coalition administration’s decision to stop the bonus to the Joint Services on the grounds that they had received “proper wage increases retroactively.” He restated that when members of the Joint Services had received back-pay, those salary increases were added to their pensions.

Mr Norton accused the incumbent People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) administration of using the one-month bonus to “divide and rule” by pitting the police f0rce and defence force “against the people” while depriving public servants. He challenged the Irfaan Ali-led administration to pay all public servants a one-month bonus salary from next year. “If you’re serious, you can put it in your next budget. Don’t just give the Joint Services. Extend it to all public servants and don’t come and tell me you ain’t got money because you got money. You just done fete CARICOM in high style,” said Mr Norton who is also Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform, the largest party in the opposition coalition.

As part of the coalition’s people-centered strategy, he said the income tax threshold would be increased to GY$150,000, a “livable income” would be paid, restoration of free education to the University of Guyana, reintroduction of law scholarships to deal with the “class issue.”  Both APNU+AFC and PPPC had promised in the 2020 general and regional elections to reintroduce free university education.

Meanwhile, he told party faithful at the meeting that “once we do the work” the PPPC would be removed from office.