Open letter to the Minister of Social Protection

Jun 24, 2015 Letters

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Dear Minister
Please permit me to respond to the letter written by one Ramesh Inderjit in the Sunday Kaieteur News dated June 14, 2015 captioned “The Mandate of the Guyana Revenue Authority”. He is not a staff of the GRA; it is therefore preposterous for him to pretend to represent the Mandate of GRA on matters he his unacquainted with much less employees’ vexatious issues.
However, from the style and letter contents one can easily discern who the real author is by the customary display of arrogance, acrimony and egocentric diatribe.
I debunk the distortions and misrepresentations made against  J. Ward’s letter captioned “It is not about witch-hunting’ in the Monday edition of the Kaieteur News dated June 8, 2015 which rightly called for the removal of all heads of departments and their cronies who were oppressive and have abused their offices to foster corruption, nepotism, discrimination and favoritism.
He did not cast aspersions on anyone based upon their race nor whom they would have voted for as “Inderjit” conveys. Moreover, no one is indispensable. They can sabotage and undermine this current Government from the inside.
“Inderjit” however does not address the many legitimate issues highlighted but shamelessly seeks to muzzles the free press and silence the messenger from exposing these improprieties. He clandestinely wants employees’ complaints be kept indoors so that these abuses remain in the closet.
Why are these Government officials afraid of public scrutiny? The talk about staff being demoralised when legitimate criticisms are levied is simply hogwash. Many employees are grateful when someone exposes and champions our plight. The Lords of GRA would have already destroyed their own credibility and besmirched their character by their own outburst, malpractices and improprieties.
The writer is misleading the public about the operations of various sub-committees which are under the supervision of the CG and not the GRA board. Were they functioning prudently and impartially in accordance to their lawful mandate there would not have been such widespread irregularities and abnormalities.
In reality there has been a great departure from the sound lawful structure and management under the former Commissioner General who demitted office in 2003. Many changes to the GRA Acts are unlawful since have not received parliamentary approval and assented to Law.
Employees’ grouses are many but the recourse for justice is non-existent since the divisions tasked with investigation and representation in an impartial manner are severely compromised since the hierarchy have manipulatively placed certain employees to head these divisions who are comfortable at elevation to high positions thereby settling to being rubber-stamps to officialdom; “massa”.
The claims to strict adherence to Standard Operation Procedures are superficial. Achieving justice and fairness through these legitimate channels are almost impossible. Whatever the boss says becomes law.
The GRA was created in 2000 under an umbrella body headed by a Commissioner General being the administrative head overseeing the operations of the various Departments having their respective substantive heads to administrate the day to day operations and should report to the offices of the CG. For the past decade the Customs and Trade Administration and Inland Revenue Department have no substantive head.
Under this present management the functions and operations of the various departments have been capriciously circumvented by the manipulative Czar who micro-manages the day to day affairs of the various sub- divisions, section and sub-committees having the lower management and auxiliary staff report to them directly instead of the Comptroller of Customs and the head of Inland Revenue Department; responsibilities that do not fall under those officialdom offices’ (CG) job portfolio duties and responsibilities. Likewise, the offices of the CG have now exposed themselves directly culpable and answerable for the various Departments’ wrongdoings.
Under ad havoc policies many who have been in the employ for over eighteen years have been deliberately stagnated at junior positions and superseded by junior, inexperience and unknowledgeable  individuals even though recommendations would have been made by their immediate supervisors for them to be promoted. Yet these rejects are compelled to guide and teach their superiors who do not know the work. There is disrespect and exclusion of the workers’ recognised Representative trade Union to participate in the decision making process on behalf of employees’ welfare as stipulated by law.
Indeed it is imperative that this new government address the disparity where officials receive tax-free super salaries whilst the masses are taxed. Are we subtly promoting an imperialistic or class structure where lords are praised and rewarded handsomely whilst their Subjects (slaves) are burdened with heavy workload but are paid pittance?
To compound our woes the regulatory Board and other oversight entities have turned the proverbial blind eye to these glaring infractions and abuse of offices. Complaints remain uninvestigated and remain cold cases. Their inactions have allowed these officials free reigns into becoming loose cannons, maybe content that the entity was achieving its revenue targets and have chosen money over workers’ welfare. For the records, the Revenue Agencies over the decades have always surpassed its annual targets under previous management because of the constant recruitment of dedicated and hard working public servants and I am confident that this will continue under any management.
I am openly seeking the intervention of the Minister of Social Protection to investigate the many complaints of victimization and marginalization of employees’ at the Guyana Revenue Authority.
Concerned staff

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