Battling to turn the voting tide in Linden and get the town behind his party, President Irfaan Ali on Sunday stood on the west side of the Demerara River in the town and said his Government has done everything that it could to alleviate the impact of the rise in the cost-of-living, promising to do more in a next term.

Addressing party supporters at a rally, the President said while the Government cannot control the global market, it will be taking additional steps to lessen the impact of global prices here.

“We are not comfortable saying that we don’t control the world market prices, that is why we have set ourselves a bold vision going forward and in that vision, we are going to invest in every form of food security so that we don’t have imported price inflation on food and food products. That is why the dairy farm is not only about the US$25 million investment, the future is about our ability to manufacture our own milk right here, our powder milk, tin milk, evaporated milk, so that we can control the cost and with the reduction in the electricity cost by more than 50% that is coming ahead of us, we will be able to do those things so that we can further control the impact of costs”, the President assured.

The rise in the cost of living continues to be a major issue in the country, with many citizens complaining openly about the impact it has been having on their daily lives. The President said over the past five years, his government has taken several steps to address the impact, including the removal of taxes on fuel imports and the increasing of the subsidy on electricity and the 5% reduction in water charges.

The President said moving forward, a Government under his watch intends to move ahead with plans that will directly impact farmers and he believes that impact will result in lower food prices.

“That is why we are investing in building a new fertilizer plant, so that our farmers can have a consistent supply of fertilizer at a consistent price and so that we are not at the mercy of international transport systems. That is why we are investing to ensure that the health expenditure and the education expenditure for every family is reduced to zero regardless of what health service or what education service you have to get, the Government will take that expenditure on your behalf”, Ali told the rally.

He pointed ot the opening of new hospitals in a number of regions and the introduction of health vouchers as part of his plans to reduce the direct impact of the cost of living on citizens.

President Ali said the PPP is a party of plans and vision and strategy and wants an overwhelming majority in the parliament to be the result of the upcoming elections so that the party can forge ahead with its many plans and strategies.

The Linden rally was told that “when they tell you that they will give you more grants, higher pension, more salaries, they are not telling you anything new. Tell them that the PPP is the one who have already given us and will guarantee more and more and more of that”.

In laying out his vision for another five years in office, the President said his party’s vision in government is about investing in productivity, investing in capabilities, expanding the market reach, job creation and enabling part-time workers to graduate to full time jobs.

The President said there will be major investments in the town of Linden through economic empowerment and entrepreneurship and the operationalization of a development bank that will provide easier access to financing for those in business and those seeking to become business owners.

The PPP has always faced an uphill task in its repeated efforts to convince Lindeners to throw their full support behind the party.

Linden and Region 10 have voted overwhelming over the years for the People’s National Congress and the PNC-led A Partnership for National Unity.

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