NewsWhore
04-26-2012, 04:50 PM
Speaking on the Voto-2012 special TV series with interviews with the candidates on their proposals for the 20 May presidential election, former President Hipolito Mejia said that fighting corruption would be a key priority of his government. He described corruption as a "national disgrace." He said he is prepared for government officials who may err in their decisions, but not for those who take what is not theirs, and said they would have judicial problems because he would "not play around with that." He said he would apply existing laws to fight corruption and would reform others. He said that administrative corruption is a cancer that has metastasized.
Mejia said he would fight the wasteful spending that has the Dominican Republic in 142nd place of 142 countries in the wasteful spending category in the World Economic Forum global competitiveness report. He criticized the way in which the government payroll has ballooned, describing it as "a sterile bureaucracy".
He criticized the fact that government resources are used to employ 334 deputy ministers, with 37 vice consuls in New York alone, and that there are vice consuls who do not even live in the areas where they are appointed. He pledged austerity in his new government. Mejia, speaking at the televised talk hosted by the Corripio media group on TeleAntillas (Channel 2) and TeleSistema (Channel 11), said that he would give priority to agriculture, education, public health, production, and making available credit to productive sectors. He expressed his support for the small and medium-sized business sector, saying that they are the backbone of the country's development, welfare and social and economic stability. He said education was the basic priority of his government, because without education there are no possibilities for progress. He said health would be his second priority, and recalled that it was during his government that the present social security bill was approved. He criticized the fact that the country now depends on imports, for many items that the country should be purchasing from local farmers. "I continue with my ties to the farm and because I am from that sector, I am sure there are extraordinary opportunities in agriculture," he said, as reported in Hoy.
He announced that he would conduct a fiscal reform to improve the efficiency of the state.
Mejia added that he would sign an agreement with the IMF and stressed that construction would be a major area for his government, on the basis that construction stimulates the economy.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#7)
Mejia said he would fight the wasteful spending that has the Dominican Republic in 142nd place of 142 countries in the wasteful spending category in the World Economic Forum global competitiveness report. He criticized the way in which the government payroll has ballooned, describing it as "a sterile bureaucracy".
He criticized the fact that government resources are used to employ 334 deputy ministers, with 37 vice consuls in New York alone, and that there are vice consuls who do not even live in the areas where they are appointed. He pledged austerity in his new government. Mejia, speaking at the televised talk hosted by the Corripio media group on TeleAntillas (Channel 2) and TeleSistema (Channel 11), said that he would give priority to agriculture, education, public health, production, and making available credit to productive sectors. He expressed his support for the small and medium-sized business sector, saying that they are the backbone of the country's development, welfare and social and economic stability. He said education was the basic priority of his government, because without education there are no possibilities for progress. He said health would be his second priority, and recalled that it was during his government that the present social security bill was approved. He criticized the fact that the country now depends on imports, for many items that the country should be purchasing from local farmers. "I continue with my ties to the farm and because I am from that sector, I am sure there are extraordinary opportunities in agriculture," he said, as reported in Hoy.
He announced that he would conduct a fiscal reform to improve the efficiency of the state.
Mejia added that he would sign an agreement with the IMF and stressed that construction would be a major area for his government, on the basis that construction stimulates the economy.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#7)