Guyanese must pay through their noses

Aug 04, 2013 Features / Columnists, My Column

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Not so long ago, Guyanese were not travelling overseas as much as they are today for many reasons. For one, the disposable income was not as much as it was today, simply because Guyanese concentrated on spending what they earned on food. And food was expensive, largely because many of the items people craved was in short supply and had to be smuggled from neighbouring Suriname, at a cost.
Vehicles were not at a premium because of the strict importation laws. Vehicles could not be more than six years old and the tax was prohibitive. The result was that money that is now spent on saving for a vehicle can now be spent on travel.
Another reason why disposable income was scarce was because there was no cocaine crossing the borders, so people relied extensively on their earnings from traditional sources. There was marijuana, but even marijuana use was not as prolific as it is today.
Those who cultivated marijuana made money, but then again they did not make the millions that cocaine now brings. And besides, marijuana was largely for those who were close to the Rastafarian followers—ordinary men and women who were seeking an identity in a world where the focus was on the academics.
Things changed after 1992 when the People’s Progressive Party came into office. Soon after those elections there was a large cocaine drop at a place called Loo Lands in the Demerara River. Tons of cocaine were found in the river and people in the vicinity helped themselves to what they could. Of course the authorities got a substantial amount.
Before long there were other cocaine drops, and with it came millions of dollars from North American and European sources. People became immensely rich and some of that money trickled down to the ordinary man, many of whom were the small dealers. Things looked up and Guyana’s economy looked more robust than it actually was.
Today, the Georgetown skyline is comparable to many other countries and people have more money for the fun things in life, not least among them being money to travel to countries that were once mere names and places that were only viewed on television screens, because television had become ubiquitous.
Of course, by then nearly every Guyanese had a relative in either New York or Canada or Great Britain. They had relatives scattered all over the world, either because those relatives had dared to travel ‘backtrack’ or had joined the long line of professionals who had been recruited to serve anywhere but in Guyana.
Air travel was now commonplace, as Guyanese began to send their children overseas for vacations and they themselves taking vacations anywhere but in Guyana. There were airlines that needed to increase their schedules because of the numbers of people seeking their services. There were the regular airlines and the charters. There was no shortage of airlines operating out of Georgetown.
But as they say, all good things come to an end. One by one the airlines disappeared and Guyanese were left to the mercies of Caribbean Airlines, the largest regional carrier. And so it was that on Wednesday there were no less than three flights out of Georgetown by seven that morning. Such was the crowd seeking to check in, that the flight I was on was late by nearly an hour.
There was a stopover of about two hours in Trinidad so it was believed that the lost time in Georgetown would have been made up because the aircraft from the Trinidad leg would have left on time. Well that was not to be; the pilot announced that there was a problem with the air conditioning and that the problem would be fixed within twenty minutes. It was three hours before the aircraft left.
There was no consideration of a snack or anything. Then when the aircraft touched down at the Lester Pearson Airport in Toronto, there was a wait on the runway for almost another hour. Another aircraft was at the gate. Caribbean Airlines had missed its berth.
To add insult to injury, the airhostess, with a tone of happiness said, “Thank you for choosing Caribbean Airlines.”  She was certainly not talking to the Guyanese. They had no choice.
When Delta operated there was talk that the government was not happy over an incident involving former President, Bharrat Jagdeo. In the end Delta left, and what people expected really did happen. The airfare jumped through the roof. For example, it cost me twice as much as it did last year to travel out here.
There was EZjet, which some of us knew would not have lasted long because of whom the operator was. And just as the case with the ‘Fip’ Motilall contract for the Amaila Falls hydro road, EZjet did not disappoint.
If some of us can see the inevitable, we must wonder why the government cannot see the same thing. We had Guyana Airways which was our own. When that airline came on stream the fares plummeted. I now hear that the government killed that airline because it was unhappy with the composition of the staff.
The collapse of Guyana Airways was a case of cutting one’s nose to spite one’s face. Now Guyanese must pay for that bit of indiscretion. Government people would not care, because taxpayers pay for their travel.
So for now, we are saddled with an airline that sees Guyana and Guyanese as a cash cow. Fly Jamaica is supposed to be coming and we the ordinary people expect the fares to become lower, but that is another matter.
The government has been saying that it courting a number of other airlines, but that courtship is not going anywhere. At least so it seems.

 

 

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