Housing ministers push back against opposition as 2026 Budget Debate intensifies

Minister of Housing and Water, Collin Croal, and Minister within the Ministry, Vanessa Benn, mounted strong rebuttals to opposition criticisms during the ongoing 2026 Budget debates in the National Assembly late Wednesday, defending the government’s housing record and broader development agenda.

Croal, who led off for the housing sector, described the $1.558 trillion 2026 Budget as “bold, ambitious and practical,” arguing that its focus on housing, infrastructure and social support reflects the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government’s people-centred approach to development.

He rejected opposition claims of decay and poor quality in government-built homes, accusing former APNU+AFC officials of “selective amnesia” about their own record in office between 2015 and 2020. According to Croal, the previous administration constructed just 200 houses along the coast, introduced duplexes without a legal framework, and failed to acquire new lands for housing expansion.

By contrast, Croal said the PPP/C government has allocated more than 53,000 house lots over the past five years, invested over $1.7 billion in hinterland housing, and is currently constructing thousands of homes across all regions. He pointed to major developments such as Silica City, where more than $2.3 billion has already been expended, and accused the opposition of criticising from the sidelines after “five years asleep at the wheel.”

However, it was Minister within the Ministry of Housing Vanessa Benn who delivered the most impassioned and politically charged rebuttal of the night, using her contribution to challenge what she described as hypocrisy, racial dog-whistling and historical revisionism by opposition members.

Benn expressed deep offence at opposition references to public servants “slaving” over the budget, calling the language “distasteful and dishonourable” given Guyana’s history of enslavement. She urged members to “do better,” noting that such remarks insult the sacrifices of ancestors whose struggles made modern opportunities possible.

She also launched a sharp attack on the opposition’s moral posture, recalling the APNU+AFC government’s removal of Dr. Walter Rodney’s name from the National Archives between 2015 and 2020, a move that was reversed after the PPP/C returned to office. Benn reminded the House that it was the PPP/C that established a Commission of Inquiry into Rodney’s assassination and laid the report in Parliament.

“The resort to racism is the last refuge of a scoundrel,” Benn said, repeating the statement on the instruction of the government’s Chief Whip as heckling erupted from the opposition benches.

Turning to development issues, Benn rejected claims that communities—particularly in Region Ten—were neglected, citing detailed examples of how forest carbon credit funds have been used by Indigenous and hinterland communities to purchase equipment, improve infrastructure, support livelihoods and fund community projects.

She said communities now exercise real self-determination through village sustainability plans, something she argued was absent under the previous administration.

Benn also strongly defended Senior Minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for Finance, Dr Ashni Singh, praising his “masterclass in prudent fiscal management” and dismissing opposition attacks on the budget as theatrics rather than substance.

“The Guyanese people are tired of noise,” Benn said. “They want performance—homes built, titles delivered and communities developed.”

Both ministers spoke late Wednesday night as the National Assembly continued deliberations on Budget 2026, which the government says is designed to accelerate inclusive growth, expand housing access and strengthen social and economic resilience across the country.