NewsWhore
03-22-2012, 06:00 PM
In an interview with El Caribe, the presidential candidate for the Partido Dominicanos por el Cambio (DxC), engineer Eduardo Estrella stressed that if he is elected President he will give priority to job creation based on support for farming and small and medium businesses. He says that what is needed is fewer welfare cards and creating more jobs.
"To tackle the problem of education with a serious and precise program, and with a national commitment, where 4% is just the start, not the final resulting budget," he said. He says there needs to be a commitment to a full school day for children, including breakfast and lunch, and better working conditions for teachers, so they can earn in one shift what they are now making in two, with incentives such as housing plans.
Among his priorities he also mentioned crime prevention and consequences, regardless of social, economic and political levels, increases in police agents' standard of living through wage increases, and access to housing and medical insurance.
He said the time needs to come to replace the Solidarity Card with jobs, and that the welfare card should be reserved for the elderly and people who are not able to work.
He promised to resolve the electricity problems, offering to diversify the energy matrix. He said there can be no explanation why the Jiguey and Aguacate dam is not producing the 100 megawatts a day, or that Cogentrix is still operating using diesel, and has not been converted to natural gas.
He believes it is important to reduce payment evasion by large electricity consumers, while making pre-paid meters available for low-income sectors. "That way you buy an electricity card and you control your consumption, and don't wait to get a bill for whatever they want to charge you," he said.
Estrella is against electricity privatization and believes that transmission and the dams should continue to be managed by the government. But he warned that if by 2016 when the Madrid Accord expires there is not sufficient generation installed that is powered by natural gas and coal, "then we will have to go on our knees to the generators to renegotiate those electricity contracts."
He also disagreed about passing the power distribution companies to the private sector once they become profitable again. "Why don't they want them now?" he asked. "If they want them later when they are profitable and functional, then why can't the state keep on operating them? Now that they are in the hands of the state this does not mean that power is not collected; everyone has to pay."
Estrella also stressed that jobs should come from support for national industry and farming. He proposed a reduction in ITBIS from 16% to 10% to stimulate the economy, expanding the tax base without affecting basic goods, while reducing tax evasion.
On the question of taxes, he believes that tax reform needs to be comprehensive, starting with a policy for reducing public spending. He said there should not be government officials who make 300 times the minimum wage of a policeman, and called for reducing the size of institutions. "There is no reason why an institution should have more than four deputy ministers," he said.
He was also critical of the bloated Dominican foreign service, where a deputy ambassador earns a high wage, and 30 vice consuls are appointed at consulates abroad, and criticized the fact that "there are 10-20 institutions that deal with ground transport, when transport chaos increases by the day".
Estrella said that the government has eight institutions dealing with housing construction, but no state housing construction policy as yet. He said housing construction nationwide would be one of the pillars of the DxC government program.
Estrella also favors implementing programs for creating first jobs for young people. "Young people here go out to look for jobs, but have trouble getting one because they are required to have experience. The program would offer companies that employ young people considerable tax breaks."
He proposes to expand construction programs nationwide, with more rural roads, and construction of 36,000 classrooms, 200 vocational high schools and primary health care centers.
"A government should build large public works, but small ones, too" he said.
Estrella favors maintaining relations with Taiwan but strengthening ties with China. "I have never believed one has to break with one to have relations with the other," he said.
He also advocates zero taxation for Internet services. "I think we have to do what Panama has announced, so that the DR may become a WiFi country, starting with schools," he said.
www.elcaribe.com.do/2012/03/22/ldquohay-que-sustituir-tarjetas-por-empleosrdquo-eduardo-estrella (http://www.elcaribe.com.do/2012/03/22/ldquohay-que-sustituir-tarjetas-por-empleosrdquo-eduardo-estrella)
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#10)
"To tackle the problem of education with a serious and precise program, and with a national commitment, where 4% is just the start, not the final resulting budget," he said. He says there needs to be a commitment to a full school day for children, including breakfast and lunch, and better working conditions for teachers, so they can earn in one shift what they are now making in two, with incentives such as housing plans.
Among his priorities he also mentioned crime prevention and consequences, regardless of social, economic and political levels, increases in police agents' standard of living through wage increases, and access to housing and medical insurance.
He said the time needs to come to replace the Solidarity Card with jobs, and that the welfare card should be reserved for the elderly and people who are not able to work.
He promised to resolve the electricity problems, offering to diversify the energy matrix. He said there can be no explanation why the Jiguey and Aguacate dam is not producing the 100 megawatts a day, or that Cogentrix is still operating using diesel, and has not been converted to natural gas.
He believes it is important to reduce payment evasion by large electricity consumers, while making pre-paid meters available for low-income sectors. "That way you buy an electricity card and you control your consumption, and don't wait to get a bill for whatever they want to charge you," he said.
Estrella is against electricity privatization and believes that transmission and the dams should continue to be managed by the government. But he warned that if by 2016 when the Madrid Accord expires there is not sufficient generation installed that is powered by natural gas and coal, "then we will have to go on our knees to the generators to renegotiate those electricity contracts."
He also disagreed about passing the power distribution companies to the private sector once they become profitable again. "Why don't they want them now?" he asked. "If they want them later when they are profitable and functional, then why can't the state keep on operating them? Now that they are in the hands of the state this does not mean that power is not collected; everyone has to pay."
Estrella also stressed that jobs should come from support for national industry and farming. He proposed a reduction in ITBIS from 16% to 10% to stimulate the economy, expanding the tax base without affecting basic goods, while reducing tax evasion.
On the question of taxes, he believes that tax reform needs to be comprehensive, starting with a policy for reducing public spending. He said there should not be government officials who make 300 times the minimum wage of a policeman, and called for reducing the size of institutions. "There is no reason why an institution should have more than four deputy ministers," he said.
He was also critical of the bloated Dominican foreign service, where a deputy ambassador earns a high wage, and 30 vice consuls are appointed at consulates abroad, and criticized the fact that "there are 10-20 institutions that deal with ground transport, when transport chaos increases by the day".
Estrella said that the government has eight institutions dealing with housing construction, but no state housing construction policy as yet. He said housing construction nationwide would be one of the pillars of the DxC government program.
Estrella also favors implementing programs for creating first jobs for young people. "Young people here go out to look for jobs, but have trouble getting one because they are required to have experience. The program would offer companies that employ young people considerable tax breaks."
He proposes to expand construction programs nationwide, with more rural roads, and construction of 36,000 classrooms, 200 vocational high schools and primary health care centers.
"A government should build large public works, but small ones, too" he said.
Estrella favors maintaining relations with Taiwan but strengthening ties with China. "I have never believed one has to break with one to have relations with the other," he said.
He also advocates zero taxation for Internet services. "I think we have to do what Panama has announced, so that the DR may become a WiFi country, starting with schools," he said.
www.elcaribe.com.do/2012/03/22/ldquohay-que-sustituir-tarjetas-por-empleosrdquo-eduardo-estrella (http://www.elcaribe.com.do/2012/03/22/ldquohay-que-sustituir-tarjetas-por-empleosrdquo-eduardo-estrella)
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#10)