Kara Kara toll booth reactivation…We’re not prepared to pay – Loggers

Aug 11, 2016 News

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By Enid Joaquin
Sparks flew on Tuesday, as loggers from across Region Ten gathered at the Egbert Benjamin Exhibition and Conference Centre in Linden, for further consultations on what they consider to be the unfair imposition of toll, by the Mayor and Town Council.
The new Council, since taking up office earlier this year, has aggressively advocated for the return of the toll booth, which has been out of operation for the past three years. It was a fight that had begun with former IMC Chairman Orrin Gordon, in his quest to garner more revenue for the municipality.
But the loggers are adamant that they are not prepared to pay the toll, given the current economic climate, and the fact that they do not enjoy any duty free concessions.
“We are not going to accept this toll based on the way that the council is trying to impose this upon us. We were asking all along and we were writing the council and asking for petitions, but the council just turning up their noses at us and trying to force their will upon us, without proper consultation,” declared Winston Smith. Smith, a former councilor and businessman is presently integrally involved in the Forestry sector.
He accused the council of “looking for the easy way out” and of being deceitful.
“They are being dishonest, because while talking to us, they are going and approve this thing arbitrarily.
These people are not business-oriented, they are public servants, and they don’t understand what the fabric of the business community is like.”
Smith said that the Council should go after NICIL, who owes them over quarter of a billion dollars, which is money that was accrued from the Mackenzie/Wismar Bridge. He also suggested that they should vigorously pursue the collection of rates and taxes and aggressively lobby for the gazetting of certain communities like Amelia’s Ward, where no taxes can be collected because of not being on the tax roll.
Smith said that presently tax collection is only about forty-five percent.
Smith explained that consultations and claims and objections should have ended on the fifth of July.
“The council at their statutory meeting passed the draft on the 20th and amended what was passed on the 25th July. After I pointed it out to the mayor they went back and did amendment without adopting it at the meeting in June, so the whole process was wrong.”
Smith maintains that while the toll booth was in existence before, what was approved was not a toll point, but a port of entry.
“I’m saying that it’s a port of entry, because there will be Police ranks, GRA Officers, GEA Officers and Customs Officers – everybody except CANU…So is like you coming into a country – that is not a toll point.”
Councillor Leroy James said that in his view, more consultations could have been done.
He however drew attention to the employees of the Town Council who work under deplorable conditions, and are not sure of a pension at the end of their tenure because of the issue with NIS, where millions are owed by the council.
James also alluded to the issues with rates and taxes, pointing to those areas that are not regularized, thus no taxes could be collected. He said that “in the meantime people punishing. So how we dealing with this thing?”
“Now we had the toll booth operating before, and it used to bring a little relief, based on the records that we saw. We belief that any money that we procure here is to bring relief to some of the same people that talking. This money ain’t going in some special place. But sometimes we need a robust debate, because we want to serve the people. So I feel that some more time could have been given for consultations.”
Some important stakeholders present at the consultation included representatives from the Mayor and Town Council, the Forest Producers Association and the Linden Chamber of Commerce.
However, both Mayor Carwyn Holland and his Deputy Waneka Arrindel were absent.
Kensil Grenville who represented the Linden Chamber of Commerce said that quite often people go ahead and make decisions without proper consultation.
Grenville noted that many business persons would have made decisions over the years that would have “disenfranchised them”.
“We should not go about making decisions based on ignorance. A lot of times people make decisions without any research, without true consensus, and we should move away from this. The point is, we should be more proactive as a people, so that when decisions are being made we could be more involved. What I’m saying here is that, every stakeholder here has a part to play and we have failed.”
Councillors Leroy James and Keran Williams spoke on behalf of the council. Both agreed that there could have been more consultation.
The Kara Kara Toll booth was disbanded in 2013 following an order from former Minister Norman Whittaker. It was a huge revenue earner for the Linden Municipality, according to former IMC Chairman Orrin Gordon.

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