MP queries minister

SHADOW Treasurer and Finance Minister Joseph Lelang has asked Treasurer Ian Ling-Stuckey if the Government has only K2 billion left to spend on development projects throughout the country.
Lelang told Parliament recently that “from the K10 billion raised from internal revenue in the 2020 National Budget (excluding foreign grants), K8 billion had been spent on personnel emoluments (PE) and interest payments (IP) on borrowings.
“That leaves only K2 billion to be spent on recurrent and capital budget,” he said.
Lelang said PE and IP total expenses had increased last year.
“In the 2019 final budget outcome (FBO), the total PE and IP was about K7.6 billion as compared to the domestic revenue of about K12 billion.
“That means that we had about K4 billion to spread throughout the country on development projects.
“So when you compare, you will see that in 2019, the total PE and IP expenses absorbed 64 per cent of the FBO.
“Last year, the total PE and IP expenses increased by K400 million from 2019 absorbing 75 per cent of the 2020 FBO.”
Lelang said the treasurer had failed to address the expenditure side of the budget, amidst the dwindling revenue collection over the past two years that he was resorting to borrowing as the only option to feed the rest of the Government expenditure.
Meanwhile, Treasurer Ling-Stuckey said that he would present a detailed explanation in the next Parliament sitting.