Budget data false, says O’Neill
FORMER prime minister Peter O’Neill has reviewed the 2020 Budget and claims it has false information and data manipulated for political gain.
“The Budget prepared by this Treasurer and his Australian advisers cannot go without comment due to the fake figures and the hypocrisy they are peddling,” he said.
“This budget is a study in hypocrisy with misleading and false figures from the Treasurer that is taking PNG backwards and will undoubtedly drag PNG down into a recession.
“The budget was prepared by a group of foreign academics who do not live in our country and have spent years talking our economy down.
“Many of the measures in this budget just seek to justify their negative social media posts over recent years.
“Essentially, the Treasurer is saying that all economic ministers and officials at Treasury and other departments are wrong and have been giving incorrect figures for the past eight years.
“This is absolutely false and the Treasurer should be ashamed for seeking to tarnish the names and reputations of hard-working Papua New Guineans.”
O’Neill, who is a former treasurer and finance minister, said Ian Ling-Stuckey’s approach can do nothing but further embarrass the current prime minister.
“At the start of his term, James Marape said his government would never borrow and that was in his DNA,” he said.
“Then when Marape started talking about taking on new debt, he was criticised for flip-flopping by Opposition Treasury spokesman Ian Ling-Stuckey.
“Now, Ling-Stuckey has delivered the highest borrowing budget in our nation’s history that will take decades to repay.
“Even worse, is that the K4.6 billion in new debt does not include repaying the K1 billion loan from Australia next year, and funding a growing revenue shortfall as business activity slows.”
O’Neill said the Treasurer should also come clean regarding his blind support for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) staff-monitored programme.
“Ling-Stuckey must be honest and tell the country of the substantial cuts the IMF requires of the public service that will reduce services and public safety,” he said.
“He must tell our people about the IMF’s demand for the kina to be depreciated substantially next year which will mean increasing the price of everyday imported goods, including food.
“He must also reveal the IMF demands that there be no commercial borrowings whatsoever, even to roll over existing commercial debt.
“Ling-Stuckey has used much-reduced GDP data, incorporated so-called valuation effects and added in debt from NCDC, KCHL and a mineral project that are not within the accepted framework.
“Put simply, Ling-Stuckey had created a higher debt to GDP ratio simply by changing the methodologies used to inflate the number.”
“The Government has cut funding in half (for Education) and it will hurt our poorest families.”
11 comments
“Put simply, Ling-Stuckey had created a higher debt to GDP ratio simply by changing the methodologies used to inflate the number.”…..
Is that so O’Neill??
Perhaps better to have concluded by stating ‘Ling Stuckey”is doing exactly what I did during my days.”
What are you saying..he is replicating what you were doing 8 years ago..no need to say anything…have a cup of cold water and and swallow your pride..as it is you are history.
Peter O’Neill your days are gone. Let James Marape lead and you just support him as colleagues in good old days. During your reign you have borrowing and creating debts abroad as well secretly. Please stop pointing figures and just help run the country because we all are God’s children.
O’Neil, your time has expired and you should not be talking. During your term, you did anything and everything by your own choice and no one was behind you to make any comments because you were ruled like dictatorship and MP’s were afraid of you because you might remove them from their portfolios. Simply shut your mouth and not make any comments. Your time has forever expired and I don’t think PNC going to win more MPs in 2022 election, will be dumped like PDM.
O’NEIL YOU’RE MOST HATED BY PEOPLE WHEN YOU SEEM TO SAY SOMETHING GOOD BUT YOU’RE TO BE BLAMED FOR THE DEBTS.PEOPLE DON’T TRUST YOU ANYMORE……
PO kids making all sorts of stupid comments about you but keep your head up because not even PMJM is to get to beat the benchmark you set. Infact you change PNG & no one will dispute that.
I am PMJM supporter when he brain washed people and politicians by his sweetly sugar talks. However, he had slapped us parents with sudden cutting down of free education and borrowing from our children in tertiary instituitions are pain and expect lots of students will be on the streets. Lot of borrowing and depreciating of kina will sky rocket the prices of simple tin fish and rice. At the same time, I will pay tuition fees, my children will repay their loan and where is this government heading to? James Marape government already deduct huge amount of money in our salaries started some months ago. We are expecting nothing good from James Marape government but expecting chaos and increasing violence. PM JM must step down.
Good comment on political level of argument for better PNG. I think p.o do it for better png likewise oppotion did last couple of donkey years gone.we all ague for better place.p.o congret for public’s in media for better placing
Encourage to parents…NO PAIN NO GAIN.pay your children’s shool fees so in future, its you to benefit.
Don’t comlain!
Peter O’Neil knows exactly what he is talking about. We, PNG, has just been sold to the IMF. You guys know what IMF and the World Bank does to most developing countries? They give huge loans on un-repayable terms, on the condition that the borrower change it’s policies to suit them. Why was TFF abolished? to un-educate our future it seems, and IO bet it is one of the conditions of IMF. Why is the Treasurer blindly supporting the IMF staff-monitored program? If it is to downsize our public service machinery, then we have a big problem. Ling-Stuckey must be honest and tell the country of the substantial cuts the IMF requires of the public service that will reduce services and public safety. The questions raised by Peter O’Neil are very important questions which must be addressed by PMJM and his treasurer, or else we are heading for disaster. The IMF’s demand for the kina to be depreciated substantially next year is very very dangerous, if the prices of goods and services increases next year, we are doomed.
Peter O’neil went to China to get loans when he was PM just to avoid IMF and it’s conditions. PMJM is leading us to the grave. That’s a fact.
PO has done so many great things, Change Port Moresby, Lae and other centers. If Past governments has done similar things, PNG would have changed. PO build roads to remote areas for little farmers and people who deserve to benefit from GDP per Capita, supply agriculture products to markets. PM JM should continue to set up markets so little people can directly supply their product to all of PNG and abroad. That’s real economic development. You know PO borrow to invest in economic sector. How can PMJM blindly getting money from IMF, we don’t want to follow their matrix, they dont care about us. They deal with large economies. Don’t take back PNG from Progressing, lets progress.
Comments are closed.