– youth, hinterlands targetedThe five-party opposition coalition, A Partnership for National Unity, says that it wants to study a Code of Conduct proposed by the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) before signing as several critical issues including campaign financing and equitable state media access need addressing.During its weekly press briefing, APNU said that it has received a copy of the document and was studying it.The People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR),Wholesale Jerseys USA, which a major partner of APNU, had refused to sign the Code of Conduct during the 2006 National Elections.Yesterday, senior executive member of the ruling People’s Progressive Party, Robert Persaud, disclosed that his party stand ready and willing to sign the document which outlines the conduct of political parties during campaigning in the upcoming elections.According to Lance Carberry, a senior Policy and Manifesto Committee member,Jerseys NFL Cheap, the coalition will only sign on when it is satisfied that conditions are met.Among these conditions, APNU’s Dr. Maurice Odle said, was the critical issue of campaign financing and media access.The issue of access to state media, including television, is also not anything new for the opposition which has been accusing the government of refusing permission and hogging the coverage.Recently, there has been accusation that PPP/C was using state resources to give handouts to especially Amerindians and to host events, including the Day of Appreciation held last Friday at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence.PPP’s weaknessesAPNU unveiled some of plans to boost the economy once the grouping takes power.Identifying some of the weaknesses, PNCR’s former Finance Minister, Carl Greenidge, pointed to poorly maintained roads, water and expensive, inadequate electricity as some of the major problems.Limited and expensive IT access and the alarming flight of labour and skills out of Guyana have not helped. Coupled with this are the narrow range and level of investment.“Investment is limited primarily to the area of minerals and agriculture. The narrowness of this investment has limited intentions the Government may have of diversifying the economy which remains largely dependent on gold and bauxite mining, rice, sugar and forestry.”He argued during the press conference yesterday, that there are several long-standing constraints on economic freedom including the following widespread corruption in government and blatant violations of the rule of law.APNU wants issues of equitable state TV access and campaign financing to be addressed in Code of Conduct for political parties.Violent crimes, drug trafficking; the arbitrary exercise of power of the state and political and racial discrimination are also very evident.“The state of our economic statistics leaves a lot to be desired and the Government’s efforts to mask failure by trying to confuse analysts,China Jerseys, by devices such as changing the base years for the economic series.The unreliability of our figures was vividly demonstrated in the unseemly dispute with local newspapers over their citing of the EIU figures on growth in 2010.”Education,wholesale jerseys, hinterlandsIn changing these issues, APNU intends to immediately target the vulnerable, particularly young women and men.“For that reason, jobs and training will be one of our highest priorities with special attention given to the quality of jobs and the level of remuneration. The most urgent programmes are to be directed to these ends.”It will involve the radical refashioning of schools and training curricula to gear Guyana into the 21st century and the related ongoing digital and information revolution.”With these policies we offer a message of hope for the young, with the prospect of a better tomorrow which is in keeping with their aspirations. To this end, an APNU-led administration will implement a youth-focused human resource development programme,jerseys nfl wholesale, offering special training and adjustment programmes for the unemployed young.”Additionally, there will be a “systematic effort” to raise standards and prospects of hinterland communities without damaging and degrading their culture and unique practices. “We shall, therefore, examine and, where appropriate,Cheap MLB Jerseys China, institute more effective means of rendering protection to those hinterland communities that find themselves in close proximity to mining and other economic activities.”APNU also said that it will establish the constitutionally mandated autonomous Public Procurement Commission. “This measure would provide the needed transparency and fairness for Public Procurement activities.“The refusal of the PPP Administration to implement the decision has enabled the widespread misappropriation of billions of taxpayer and donor agencies funds. We will find those funds in the pockets of relatives, cronies and corrupt contractors.”Greenidge also blasted “abuses”. “First is the systemic abuse of Supplementary Provisions whereby the Minister of Housing and Water, for example, used $4.0Bn to subsidise GUYSUCO without the approval of the National Assembly. The Contingencies Fund is also routinely abused with large sums of money being drawn from it to meet expenditure not eligible under the Financial Administration and Management Act.“$3.945Bn was drawn from the Fund by way of probably illegal advances to Ministers.”Then there is still the absence of the audited accounts for the funds used during the 2005 Floods, World Cup Cricket tournament, hosting of CARIFESTA X and the ICC Twenty/20 tournament.
