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Georgetown, Guyana (Credible Sources) Former Finance Minister Winston Jordan, during an appearance on Nation Watch with Mervyn Williams on December 15, 2024, strongly refuted claims by Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo about his role at the Ministry of Finance. “Mr. Jagdeo, has never produced a single budget at the Ministry of Finance,” Jordan recalled from his December 9, 2016 “wrapping up” of the 2017 budget in the National Assembly.
Jordan’s statement was in response to assertions by Jagdeo that his involvement in fiscal management and policymaking during his tenure was central, while diminishing Jordan’s contributions.
In his detailed recount, Jordan outlined his return to the Ministry in 1993 after completing a fellowship in the United States, emphasizing his status as the “first director of budget” and his instrumental role in crafting national budgets under Jagdeo’s leadership. Jordan recalled a pivotal moment in 1996 when Jagdeo, then Minister of Finance, struggled to write portions of the budget speech.
Jordan said he committed to every other part of the budget, but two he considered political but ended up having to “do the introduction and the conclusion,” as well, describing the situation as evidence of Jagdeo’s limited technical involvement in budgeting.
Jordan revisited the 2016 Hansard record, reiterating that he had contributed to 25 national budgets by then, further challenging Jagdeo’s repeated narrative. He criticized Jagdeo’s claims as misleading and reflective of “intellectual inferiority,” adding that he had cut newspaper articles to glean policy direction under Jagdeo’s leadership, underscoring what he saw as a lack of structured planning.
The discussion expanded to broader governance matters, including Jagdeo’s previous criticisms of fiscal decisions during the APNU+AFC administration, such as the management of the Natural Resource Fund (NRF). Jordan contrasted the coalition’s 2019 NRF framework, which included committees to ensure fiscal responsibility, with the current administration’s approach, which he labeled as opaque and less accountable.
Throughout the interview, Jordan refuted Jagdeo’s accusations with supporting documentation and historical context, challenging the Vice President to provide evidence for his claims. The former Finance Minister has reiterated his commitment to professional integrity, stating that his track record and contributions to national budgeting remain undisputed.
