Minister of Local Government and Regional Development Sonia Parag has vigorously defended her performance and government’s policies following what she described as a “quite disturbing and unsettling” speech by Opposition Parliamentarian Ganesh Mahipaul during the ongoing budget debates in the National Assembly.
Mahipaul, who contributed before Parag, accused the Local Government and Regional Development Minister of being the most incompetent Minister in the history of Ministers at the Ministry.
However, Parag, an attorney-at-law, did not spare time to rap the Opposition Parliamentarian, whose speech she described as “most disappointing.”
She posited that such a speech was for the Opposition Leader Aubrey Norton. The Local Government and Regional Development Minister informed the National Assembly that under the APNU+AFC tenure, the Ministry’s funds went into recurrent, not capital expenses.
“The Ministry of Local Government didn’t exist in 2015 to 2020, they merged it under the Ministry of Communities with four other Ministries,” Parag stated. Parag said the Ministry will improve solid waste management this year.
“We have engaged the people of the community, and we don’t sweep issues under the rug. We have the political will, and the competence and will take the political responsibility to get it done.” She made references to the compact trucks for NDCA, the firefighting mobile vehicles. She explained that 13 landfills have been created from 2020 to now, and more will be available in Regions Three, Four, Five, Six, Nine, and 10 this year. “This year $2.8 billion is under the subvention programme and we will ensure that the Neighbourhood Democratic Councils (NDCs) can utilise them to enhance and upgrade their communities,” Minister Parag stated while responding to Mahipaul, who accused the government of not increasing the subvention of these local organs. “We will strengthen the regional system by putting the citizens’ desk in the NDCs to accommodate all those pensioners, those public assistance assessing information regarding government’s services.”
