Gov’t making it seem as if we’re negligent in our districts — Penn
Opposition Leader Marlon Penn has protested that the government has made it seem as if members of the Opposition are being negligent within their constituencies.
According to Penn, government officials have halved their district funding allocations and also have control over how funds are to be spent.
“You continue to hear persons who tend to have the opposing view to the Opposition make it seem as if we are negligent in executing many of the projects within our community,” Penn said at a recent press briefing.
But according to Penn, it is the administrative and financial responsibility of the sitting administration and their ministers to execute projects within the various constituencies throughout the territory.
“We have an obligation to advocate, particularly for the projects and concerns within our constituency which we continuously do as district representatives, as members of the opposition,” he stated.
He continued: “The only funding as it relates to capital expenditure that we might have earmarked directly to our districts are specifically under the civil mitigation vote in the Ministry of Transportation in Works. In fact, that vote has been cut this year from $200,000-$100,000.”
“In addition to the cut,“ Penn added, “if there were projects that were started in 2021 and those projects were not completed, the funding will be taken away from the $100,000 that we now have available that was usually $200,000.”
Penn further expressed that there was a limit to the funding available to Opposition members and emphasised that they had no control over its disbursement since the subject minister could dictate what he could do with the funds allocated to each district.
Penn noted, however, that the Works Minister has been cooperative thus far with district representatives.
Meanwhile, the Opposition Leader publicly acknowledged and thanked some of the persons that continue to support development within the various districts.
“Many of the business persons, despite the challenges economically, have continued to assist where they can with public schools, with some of the infrastructural needs of our community where we are absent the funding from central government to address many of those issues within the community,” Penn stated.
The reality is that there needs to be an education process with the public in terms of how public financing works and how government projects are executed, Penn said.
Copyright 2024 BVI News, Media Expressions Limited. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or distributed.
The VIP should be ashamed of themselves because each district has 5 representatives and it happens so that 4 out of the 5 of them are VIP candidates
My Friend, I wish NPD and other Parties had done differently when they were in government. This is the flip side of politics. Until we stop being politicians to become statemen and women, the Party in power will focus attention on the people who voted them into power. Are you telline me you dont know this is the modus operandi of our political system?
Both sides need getting the boot from voters – after twenty five years of parties the BVI looks and behaves like a banana republic
Totally correct. Unfortunately, the lack of investment in education by both parties means there is a very limited pool of people from which new leadership can emerge to change all this. Plus breaking the bonds of nepotism and cronyism in a small minded place is never going to be easy.
You mean after 50 years of parties! he VIP was formed in 1971 and the NDP only got in in 2003. That is 12 years of NDP and 38 of the VIP! Do the math and look around and tell me which is the worse party to ever run this nation!!!
Marlon need to hush he mouth because when he was the government he take the sewage money and give Mark for pier park. he government had control over the money but he was just a waste. You no better on any side of the fence.
You hush your mouth! At least we know where the money went. You see a Pier Park out there right? A Pier Park that bringing in more cruises than ever before, putting money back into the Government’s purse!!!!
And when will Pier Park find out what happened with the missing 10 + million? And, please share with us exactly how much money PP is putting into the govt., vs the Romney accounts.
And they use to bad talk NDP for not doing in their districts. At least NDP use to give them their full district allocations.
I do not understand how the government cutting cutting but still need money.
This must be a joke because none of the districts were blossoming when NDP was in power so Marlon just playing politics as usual. When Mark took his money to fix the sewage in his district he rewarded NDP by running with them for another term. I sick of politics. He never blamed Dr Smith when rats were taking over Purcell. He never blamed Myron when things went wrong in the 3rd district now it’s Government’s job because his party no longer holds 11 out of the 13 seats like they previously did. Where was all this talk when his party controlled government.
Check the history…
It was 11 to 2, 11 VIP and 2 NDP (Dr Smith and Dr Pickering). This was after the VIP campaigned that NDP were selling out for the development of Beef Is.
Funny how you remember that from way back in 2007 but conveniently forget that it was just Fraser and Fahie as recently as 2015-2019.
I stand corrected.
It’s incomprehensible that districts will be allotted a mere 200K now halved to 100K as per the opposition leader. There is very little that money can do to serve the district needs.
Given that fact there should be a general plan in place by the government proper to fund needed capital projects in each district regardless of which party those district reps belong to.
Specifically, when a new government gets in office, there should be a master plan to address the country’s problems overall including districts that did not vote for reps for the current government.
Once that government is in place, they should be looking out for the interest of all residents and the country as a whole, but as typical the mindset has always been to politicize who gets help and who does not.
Some are ok with one part of the islands looking better than others. Its small mindedness on a grand scale and represents poor leadership regardless of government doing this. The VIP is guilty if this as much as the previous NDO government. That modus operandi should change for the overall growth of the country and all residents.
No district should be left behind. If one clean one part of their house and leave another unclean, the house overall can only be considered partially clean.
There should be a 30 to 50 year plan for the Territory and both Government and Opposition sign off on an MoU! So regardless of which party gets in they have to follow that plan instead of start/stop projects cause your turn to siphon money from the Treasury was lost. Politicians are a set of entitled administrators.
Look at Singapore and look at China; 30 and 100 year plans, respectively. We are too short-sighted in this place and need to change the way we conduct the peoples’ business.
Agreed. A long term plan is definitely needed when it comes to work being done in the districts snd the country as a whole that should be devoid of politics. There are some general things that should be routinely done in all district: Schools, roads, water to name a few.
Yet, there is zero plan, other than the politicians’ game of personal self enrichment with the public purse. For how many years now have we celebrated H Lavitty Stoutt who was fond of quoting the biblical passage about where there is no vision, the people will perish? We had money, but no plan for decades. We wasted our money for not having one, and still have no plan. The infrastructure is a mess, our schools still not fixed up, we burn our garbage in the open 3rd world style, we import our labour and treat them shamefully, and seem OK with the general cronyism, nepotism and general lack of accountability of lost public funds. As we sow, so we must reap, alas.
Do not believe this l**r.
The 1 n 3 districts were victimized for 8 years the current opposition never had it so good just ask Fraser and mitch
I agree it is not just District 8. But looking at the trash around dumpsters, the litter and the overgrown bush in all parts of District 8, I would not give him (or any other district rep) another dime.
I have seen poor Asian countries with poor infrastructure, but their streets are clean. In the African country of Rwanda, the president himself joins with volunteers once a month to keep their streets clean.