JDIP budget overshot by J$7b, says Phillips
Published:Friday | January 20, 2012 | 12:00 AM
The budget for the Jamaica Development Infrastructure Programme was deliberately ignored in the run up to the December 29 general election and was overshot by US$80 million or close to J$7 billion, according to Finance and Planning Minister Dr Peter Phillips.
"That was sprinting with it," he said, taking a shot at the 'run wid it' categorisation by critics of comments made by former Finance Minister Dr Omar Davies following the 2002 general elections, which suggested he allowed some ill-advised spending to ensure that the People's National Party was returned to power.
Phillips was addressing the monthly Mayberry Investors Forum in New Kingston in his first public-speaking engagement since assuming the ministerial position two weeks ago.
According to the minister, more debts were racked up by the outgoing Jamaica Labour Party government through the ordering of some £96 million (J$10.6 billion) worth of buses, which was not included in the Budget.
A spokesman for the Jamaica Urban Transit Company told the Financial Gleaner that he was aware that some 200 or so buses had been ordered by the previous Government, but they are not necessarily all slated to be added to the public bus company's fleet.
"This financial profligacy took place despite the existence of a fiscal-responsibility framework entrenched in law that prohibits such actions," Phillips said.
Jamaica, in its standby agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), had committed to establish a fiscal-responsibility framework for the public sector, with the force of the law behind it.
"This fact speaks to the need for sanctions for such deliberate breaches flowing from ministerial action," he said, adding that "it was these breaches that contributed to the breakdown of trust between Jamaica and our international partners over the last year."
Phillips says he will soon be presenting a new supplementary Budget. (See related story on Page 4: Phillips to cut supplementary Budget as tough IMF talks resume).
He said there has been a lack of fiscal prudence as evident in the management of contract negotiations with public-sector workers and not having properly accounted for those obligations in the Budget, massive off-budget expenditures and the failure to effect the timely implementation of public-sector tax and pension reforms.
While emphasising that he did not wish to engage in a futile blame game, Phillips said, "We must acknowledge that there has been a failure to adequately manage the fiscal situation and to contain expenditure in the face of declining revenues. We must draw the line and say no to this kind of behaviour."