Budget leaves people in suspense

EIGHT months on, the powerful engines driving the nation forward was reduced to a whining sound of a dying machine.
The enchanting sound of man and machine hammering, soldering and building a nation that echoed a lively symphony across the nation, is now replaced with an eerie silence of a dysfunctional system.
Wailing and mourning is now all heard across the country and is taking momentum by the day, heralding a new order as good order and civility is thrown to the pigs.
That comes with the territory, they say.
Eight months on, the country reminisce the leadership that had the tact, depth and adept in governing a multi-cultured Melanesian society to prosperity and to live and co-exist as human beings with equal endowment and dignity with the rest of world laments quietly in shame and hopes the day for change draws sooner.
Eight months on, the country’s economy has been left at the mercy of economic mercenaries- economic hit men – by irresponsible and erratic state officials, with tendencies of working outside the conventional systems and processes, leaving the national budget a dwindling K4.6 billion deficit.
This is the biggest budget deficit in the history of our country and its no small thing.
It would be nice if we look at the person responsible for digging the economic quagmire deeper.
Is it prudent to add a K4.6 billion deficit to the existing dinau (loan)?
It gets worse when the middle working class, usually the heavily tax laden sector, the nation’s breadwinner or the nation’s milking cow, is again collared with heavy tax choking the dear life out of it.
While the wealthier class evade tax and multi-national corporations sucking our resources enjoy tax holidays, the working class Papua New Guinean gets the full brunt of the hardest tax regime.
Much worse awaits when the 2020 school year begins.
Parents will have to shoulder the weight of an irresponsible decision the government made in refusing to assist parents pay school fees.
The government can quickly pass the blame saying it’s the parent’s duty to take care of their children which of course I kind of agree but is that all will the government say when knowing well its apparent inadequacy.
A responsible government wouldn’t want to overburden an already struggling populace would it?
Children, especially the girls’ education will be seriously compromised as parents would want to prioritise boys in schools fees with limited resources.

David Lepi