TRINIDAD-Opposition leader describes budget as a betrayal of the ordinary Trinidadian.

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles, Friday, described as “deceptive, treachery and a betrayal” the T$59.2 billion (One TT dollar=US$0.16 cents) budget presented to Parliament earlier this week by Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo.

Beckles, the first woman to lead the prominent opposition People’s National Movement (PNM), since its formation 69 years ago, warned also of the possibility of a devaluation of the local currency as a result of the policies outlined in Tanocc’s first ever budget to Parliament on behalf of the coalition United National Congress (UNC) administration of Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar.

She told legislators that the government would “in the near future” be moving towards devaluing the local currency, which currently trades at 0.16 cents, and that the opposition would take “absolutely no responsibility for this fraudulent and fake budget of this incompetent government that came to office on April 28 this year.

“We warn about the irresponsibility of their promises and the expectations they were creating. We specifically warned the country that they could do this if they devalue the dollar almost 10 to one. We must oversee them because this is where they are taking us.

“Remember, we warned you, and we are warning you again that if they continue down this road, we will face a full-blown foreign exchange crisis. It will not be academic, it will not be abstract, it will mean empty shelves, job losses, and a cost-of-living explosion”.

She predicts that when this happens, it will be “because this government misdiagnosed the problem, ignored the warnings, and played politics with the economic lifeblood of this nation”.

Beckles said that the government is bringing Trinidad and Tobago “over the economic precipice” and that the alarm bells are already being rung.

“One only has to look at the most recent Standard and Poor’s credit rating report which specifically highlighted the scrapping of the Trinidad and Tobago Revenue Authority and Property Tax, and other revenue generating measures, together with increased spending, and increased borrowing, as the main reasons for the downgrade in our credit rating outlook from stable to negative and by extension, our economy.”

She said that the independent agencies are already losing confidence in the government, just five months into its term, and are raising concerns about where their disastrous economic policies will take us.

“Mr. Speaker, they will take us decades back to their origin, the infamous NAR government, which caused so much pain that they were reduced from 33 seats to two in just five years.

“Ask any qualified economist what the true state of our economy is and where these policies, if sustained for a few years, will lead us……. and they will say unequivocally to the International Monetary Fund.”

Beckles said she was disappointed that the government has not outlined any new initiatives for the energy sector, a significant contributor to the country’s revenue and the foundation of the local economy.

“I, like many citizens, was looking to the Minister of Finance’s budget to see what this government’s plans and initiatives are for the energy sector. Unfortunately, like many, I am disappointed, but not surprised, as the budget speech said very little about the energy sector, and then out of the little that was said, there was not a single new initiative, not one.”

She said it has “become clear and obvious” that the government is a loss when it comes to the energy sector.

‘The stakeholders must be salivating when preparing to negotiate against this government, as it is obvious …they are out of their depth, and I fear Trinidad and Tobago will be taken advantage of.

She brushed aside a statement by Tancoss that since coming to office, the government has acquired “landmark energy deals’ saying the deal production sharing agreement signed recently with the US oil giant, ExxonMobil, had been negotiated by the last PNM administration following a cabinet decision in 2024.

“It was the first time in Trinidad and Tobago’s history that the government secured interest in the ultra-deepwater acreage, and this government turned the work into a signing ceremony and now wishes to claim it as an achievement.

“I am calling on the Honorable Prime Minister to tell this country what the terms of the production sharing contract are. Did you secure a signing bonus, and how much was it? If there was none, then why was there none? What are the terms of those claims that you said you agreed to then?

“Is it true that you gave those blocks away. What are the shares and profit for the people of Trinidad and Tobago?” Beckles said, adding that the government must inform the nation what the cost recovery and concessions are to ExxonMobil.

She said similar questions about the decision of the United States to grant a six-month license to Port of Spain regarding the Dragan gas deal, which Venezuela owns, should also be answered, given that when in opposition, the UNC had been very vocal against the agreement and the Nicolas Maduro government.

“The UNC government is absolutely shameless,” she said, adding that it needs to be honest in acknowledging that the work done to secure the Dragon gas deal was done by the PNM administration, despite calls by the opposition then for Washington to impose sanctions on then Prime Minister Dr. Keith Rowley and his energy minister, Stuart Young.

“I want to remind the population that the gas belongs to Venezuela, and I want to ask the Honorable Prime Minister who she recognizes as the President of Venezuela”.

During her three hour and 15 minute response to the fiscal package, Beckles, an attorney, said the government outlined no new initiatives to deal with the crime situation even as she pledged that the opposition would be supportive of meaningful measures to deal with the problem, unlike what occurred over the last nine and a half years, when even initiative by the then government was blocked by the UNC.

She said that the budget statement delivered by Tancoo was “remarkable not only in what it said but what it did not say.

“It gave no rationale for its myriad of harsh and oppressive backward measures, it provided no analysis of the economy, gave no plans for job creation or economic stimulation other than a pie in the sky, almost childish rhetoric.

“It provided no hope or blueprint for the future. It dishonestly claimed credit for several projects and programs conceptualized and implemented by the PNM. It made wild and scandalous statements without a shred of evidence”.

Beckles said in five months since coming to office, the government has caused the local economy to collapse and “has brought pain, victimization, and misery to the bulk of our population.

“Only the favored few have benefitted,” she said, adding that when citizens ask the fundamental question, “Are they better off now than five months ago? “the answer is a resounding no.

“Further, when I look at the generating measures in this budget, I see no new sources of revenue, except new or increased taxes, fines, and fees imposed on the people of Trinidad and Tobago”.

She said what is astonishing is the government’s plan to raise more than two billion dollars from its ‘draconian increase in taxes on alcohol, especially locally manufactured rum and beer.

“What has motivated this…I wonder whose idea was this,” Beckles said, adding “no government in the history of Trinidad and Tobago has imposed this level of punishment on ordinary people whose only relaxation is often the occasional drink on a Friday night …or a river lime, on the beach on the weekend or at a gathering at a friend’s home.”

She said the government is also looking to generate revenue exceeding six billion dollars from property income by increasing its stake in state enterprise profits from TT$1.4 billion this year to TT$5.5 billion the following year.

“One thing is clear when it comes to the estimates of revenue for 2026 and that the government will not meet its grossly inflated revenue projection and at the same time it intends, to tax, fine, squeeze…to make the population pay through its nose, the small man will feel the pinch, he will not win,” she said, playing on the theme of the UNC’s election campaign that when the party wins the elections everyone will win.

“All they offered us is a plastic bag of hot air.” The debate is continuing.