Upper Berbice Forest & Agricultural Producers Association complains

Aug 11, 2017 Letters

Dear Editor,
The main reason for the compilation of this letter is to address the many challenges faced by its producing membership, and dictatorship of a failing system, as concerned members we are asking that the Guyana Forestry Commission along with the Friendly Society Acts address the many issues and challenges laid out in this letter. The U.B.F.A.P.A (Upper Berbice Forest & Agricultural Producers Association) is a wood worker’s association comprising of two hundred or so members producing logs, lumber or other non-timber forest products on its fifteen concessions. This association was a reputable one which is governed by a chairman and executives over a two-year period.
Over a number of years, this association has been plagued with numerous fines instituted by the Guyana Forestry Commission for infringements and irregularities caused by its very members in the tune of millions of dollars and counting. In keeping with the ever changing forest laws and the Low Carbon Development Strategy, market conditions and availability wood working have become a major challenge.
The U.B.F.A.P.A is an association that allocates tags to its members for the production of forest products from specific concessions that is deemed viable by its members. As it relates to capacities there are about 70% of its membership who does not cut any wood own a chain saw, tractor, trucks or for the matter does not do any farming. These individuals collect tags which are free of costs and sell them to other members of the said association and non-members also. If (600) six hundred tags was given to the association for a particular concession and they have to be divided among its members that means (3) three tags per member in simple calculation 60 people benefitted directly by getting 3 tags legally.
This cannot sustain their operations and are forced to purchase the tags from the 140 non-producing members for a huge sum of money. It has been reported and proven on numerous occasions that non-producing members are selling their tags to people who are non-members. They create numerous infringements within our concessions resulting in huge fines by the Forestry Commission.
As it relates to infringements; honest producing members are being pressured and cannot pay up for their equipment and run an efficient business. The chairman and his executives are aware of the situation and is doing nothing to address it. There is also a group of financial powerful members that cut down hundreds of logs within concessions and waiting to purchase the tags from the non-producing ones. A specific group runs a lucrative crossing service has crossed thousands of trucks and smaller vehicles including vehicles for all contractors contracted to the bauxite company, they have done nothing for the community as it relates to the barge and agreements with the community of Kwakwani. During the Baishanlin saga they also owns and operate a logging concession and many equipment, exhaust our concessions as such. This group of individuals should be out of the association as stipulated in the constitution for the association.
As concerned members, we are expecting that the Guyana Forestry Commission, the Friendly Society Acts and the Guyana Revenue Authority intervene and address this situation. All information for the crossing of logging trucks can be found in the records of the Guyana Forestry Commission record books at Kwakwani. The charge for the crossing of one truck ranges from sixteen to twenty-two thousand Guyana dollars.
Concerned loggers

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