Former Minister of Finance, Ashni Singh, charged with ‘misconduct to public office’ rehired by PPP.

November 5, 2020 – The former Minister of Finance, Ashni Singh, has been rehired as Senior Minister responsible for finance under the Office of the President (OP) and Vice President. The Oath of Office was taken at the President’s Office.

President Irfaan Ali suggested that Ashni Singh would bring over a decade of experience to his job. 

“Dr. [Ashni] Singh will be part of the team, under the umbrella of the Office of the President, which will oversee the transformative agenda of the Government, which includes projects and policies that will stimulate, expand and widen our economic base, while at the same time strengthening existing sectors,” said Ali. 

The Senior Minister expresses his enthusiasm for being offered the same position he held for almost two decades under the PPP regime. 

“I am entering office at a time when the Guyanese and the global economy are facing tremendous challenges, not least as a result of the global pandemic. President Ali’s Government has been very swift to recognize the magnitude of these challenges and has been very swift in crafting policy responses, but we are far from out of the woods. There is still a lot of work to be done. I am under no illusion of the magnitude of the challenges that are before us from the point of economic policy making and management,” said Singh. 

According to a statement, the Leader of the opposition party, Joseph Harmon, expresses his dissatisfaction at the appointment of Ashni Singh since he is still facing charges with the ‘misconduct of public office’. 

“Guyanese will remember Singh’s sordid history as Finance Minister. He was charged and is still before the court on ‘misconduct in public office charges’. He was involved in a vehicular accident while at the wheel and is accused of fleeing the scene, leaving behind bottles of alcoholic beverages in the crashed vehicle,” said APNU+AFC leader Joseph Harmon. 

Singh will appear at the 12th Parliament as a non-elected Minister, as is stipulated in the Constitution in Guyana.