Xanana called President Lú Olo stupid

 

DILI – Former prime – minister, Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão react angrily to Lú Olo’s state budget veto.

President of the republic Francisco Guterres Lú Olo is still as FRETILIN party president and his general secretary is Mari Alkatiri.

On the same day after President Lú Olo vetoed the 2019 state budget, Alkatiri also immediately stated that in order to stop this political impasse a dialogue was needed but prime minister Taur Matan Ruak replied he had no time for dialogue because he wanted to focus on the vetoed state budget to be fixed in parliament and returned to the president for promulgation.

The position of Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão is also the same that there is no way for dialogue.

Xanana said Lu Olo make a stupid decision by vetoed the state budget for 2019.

“Ohh nothing, he's stupid. I have read his justification. . . everything. . . no need . . . .  to show that he knows but even though there is no logic.

President Francisco Guterres Lu Olo said Wednesday the 2019 budget agreed to by the parliament in December would drag the country further into deficit and force it to draw down more reserves from an oil riches fund already forecast to be depleted in a decade.

In a lengthy statement, he criticized the $2.1 billion budget, East Timor's largest ever, for devoting too much to buying foreign oil assets and too little to health, education and other public services.

"These values are so low that they do not meet the minimum requirements of social services and economic growth," the statement said.

Guterres said parliament now must revise the budget, which allocates about 30 percent or $670 million to oil and gas development.

East Timor agreed in October to buy a 30 percent stake in the Greater Sunrise field off its southern coast from ConocoPhillips for $350 million. An earlier developed oil field, Bayu-Undan, is now nearly exhausted.

Lú Olo has failed twice in the presidential election, but has succeeded in winning the presidential election in March 2017 because he received a baptism from Kay Rala Xanana Gusmão.

At the time, Mr Guterres's campaign was backed by Fretilin, the party that led East Timor's revolutionary struggle to independence, and the country's behind-the-scenes powerbroker Xanana Gusmao.