Lies and discrimination cannot take Guyana forward

May 19, 2014 Letters

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Dear Editor,
It is no surprise that this government calls itself a caring government for the people has once again shows its other side of caring.
On Wednesday May 14th, 2014 on NCN Channel 15 was yet another PPP\C program named “Let’s Talk Berbice,” which was aired live and hosted by Andrew Carmichael with the guess being the Minister within the Ministry of Finance Bishop Juan Edghill.
The bishop had his fair share of knowing that Berbicians can now talk up and out against this PPP\C corrupted government.  The bishop informed Berbicians that the government will have to repay the Thrill Company because the opposition did not support the amendments to the laws that govern the environmental tax so that we can have a fair playing field in Guyana, so now Guyana will have to find money to repay this company.
I asked the bishop a few questions but it seems that he does not event understand Guyanese language because he says that my English is wrong.  Well Guyanese, you be the judges and say what’s wrong with this question that I have asked the minister. Why is it that the Government collected the tax from the company knowingly it was illegal?  I am sorry Mr. Edghill but I think the listeners understood my question because another caller was trying to ask you the same question in an American accent when the host disconnected the caller maybe that was too much English for you.
Mr. Editor, the government knew that such tax had to be for all businesses foreign and local manufactures or importers, not for the foreign companies alone but yet went ahead and breach the trade agreement for the CSME and collected the environmental tax from the company.  So I can say that the Guyana government itself is engaged in acts of illegality.  Because the PPP\C knows that the opposition did not support the passage of the bill but yet went ahead and collected the tax, they cannot say that they did not know it was illegal. But let’s look because there may be more companies that will be coming forward for their share of money that this government collects illegally.
The bishop must be of clear mind because the bible speaks of wolf in sheet clothing that will come to us.  He started to say on the program that the caller was promoting the opposition work and that the opposition is calling for more monies for old age pensioners and this money that the government has to repay according the ruling CCJ could have gone to the said pensioners.
Mr. Edghill, I don’t know if you are thinking or having a sound memory because the budget estimates for 2014 were already passed and signed by your government when the CCJ made their ruling.  So how come the money you now have to repay to the Thrill Company could have been used to give the old age pensioners something more, when your government denied giving those pensioners a raise of pension to $15,000.00 monthly.  You then shock the nation and old age pensioners by saying what your government has done to some of them.
A caller asked a very important question on old age pensioners subsidy to GPL and also went on to calculate the amount of money this government will recollect from this subsidy which will be around $450 million due to the fact that one third of the pensioners does not own a property or have the electricity meter in their name.  Well, the minister seems to agree with the caller and inform the viewers that the money will be going back to the national purse but wait it was stunning.
The minister then told the public that the government knows that not all the pensioners will be getting the subsidy because it will ONLY be for the ones that are customers to GPL. Is this true Mr. Minister?
So you and your government are saying now that not all the pensioners will be receiving the GPL subsidy but a few.  What will happen with the ones in the interior who does not get electricity from GPL?
I am calling on the majority parliamentarians to now question this GPL subsidy that the old age pensioners are to receive from government and our tax dollars that was allocated in the 2014 national budget.  Do something to make sure that the money allocated to them for electricity from GPL be given to them on a monthly basis instead of GPL collecting the $30,000.00 yearly.
This clearly shows that this government is discriminating against our old age pensioners and people, who suffer, sacrifice, work hard day and night to make Guyana a better place for us.  How can we allow this to happen?  The minister had the guts to tell the nation that only a small portion will be entitled to the subsidy. Are the others who are old age pensioners not entitle to the same benefits as some?
Well Mr. Edghill, you and your corrupt  PPP\C government must know that what is allocated for one pensioner will have to be allocated to all pensioners.
I call on the leadership and Parliamentarians of the AFC to take up this matter seriously because we cannot allow discrimination to be the order of the day in this country.  We must stand up for our people no matter young or old and continue the fight for a better Guyana.
Abel Seetaram
Chairman
AFC Region 5

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