BUDGET CLARIFICATION LEAVES MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS: WALE

By Andrew Fanasia Jr.

Deputy Opposition Leader Mathew Wale has commended the Permanent Secretary Special Duties for reforms and projects and the Director of the Policy and Evaluation Unit of the Prime Minister’s Office, Mr Luma Darcy and Mr Peter Boyers for their efforts in trying to clarify the budget submission for the newly established Bureau for Social and Economic Reform.

However, Mr Wale said the clarifications have left more questions than answers to the valid concerns raised by the Opposition over this matter.
“ If the statement by Mr Darcy is true that the final costing for the newly established Bureau of Social and Economic Reform is yet to be approved, why did the Prime Minister’s Office submit it to the Ministry of Finance and Treasury for inclusion in the 2011 budget?

“The Office of the Leader of Opposition has confirmed with relevant officials from the Ministry of Finance and Treasury that the $4.8-million budget submission for the bureau’s 13 officers published by the local print media was final and not a mere discussion material.”

“If the bureau is not part of the Prime Minister’s Private Political Office, would the 13 posts in it be advertised by the Ministry of Public Service as required under the conventional public service recruitment regulation? The Opposition will be closely monitoring the government to ensure it abides by this regulation if indeed the bureau is not part of the Prime Minister’s Private Political Office,” he said.

The Deputy Opposition Leader said it was interesting to read Mr Boyers trying to defend the hefty budget for the Bureau of Social and Economic Reform by blaming the Sogavare and Dr Sikua regimes for the recruitment of some political appointees of the NCRA Government.

He said unless the political appointees referred to by Mr Boyers continue to serve the new Danny Phillip-led government under their contracts with the previous governments, then he is either naïve or trying to mislead the public on the matter.

“As far as political appointments are concerned, employment contracts of political appointees of any ruling political government are terminated at the end of its term in office and the next political government makes political appointments at its own discretion.

“It is apparent that the appointees referred to are supporters of certain politicians in the NCRA Government and their appointments with the two previous governments were through these same connections.”

Mr Wale said as with this budget submission, the Opposition will need as much time as the NCRA Government to discover its own mind as to what the bureau is and its logistical implication adding the NCRA Government will have been in power for eight months when the 2011 National Budget will be presented to Parliament next April.

The Deputy Opposition Leader said the Opposition is concerned that NCRA has a habit of making proposals it has no idea about and referred to the proposed Forgiveness Bill as another classic example.