Sugar workers severance 'hemorrhaging' the government - Pres. Granger

Sugar workers severance ‘hemorrhaging’ the government – Pres. Granger

Sep 13, 2018 News

Residents gathered at the meeting at East Bank Berbice

Head of State David Granger has said that the severance payment for sugar workers is ‘hemorrhaging’ the government while noting that over $32B was spent to bail out the industry over the last three years.
The Head of State made the grim observation yesterday while meeting residents at the East Bank Berbice.
“I am not blaming the corporation, I am not blaming the workers, I am not even blaming the previous administration but all I am saying is that we had a situation where you cannot sell on the world market at 50 cents a pound while everybody else is paying 25 cents a pound”.
This he said resulted in a difficult decision to have only three major estates operating and to have as many workers as possible retained, “so right now the government is hemorrhaging with the payments we have to make and that hemorrhaging has sucked funds from other services”. He also made it clear that the government is making stringent efforts to ensure that jobs are safeguarded within the sugar industry.
Meanwhile, touching on local government elections, President Granger urged locals to mobilize and organise for the upcoming elections while outlining the importance of exercising a right to vote.
He stated that he is committed to having local government elections regularly and believes that such an election is critical when fostering social cohesion.
“I believe that you have a right to elect your own leaders. Local government deals with local issues, you have the power through local government to improve situations. I believe that local government is very important for social cohesion, I’d like to see more Africans at Highbury and more Indians at Union Village”, he asserted.
The Head of State posited that, “You don’t vote for race, you don’t even vote for political parties, you vote for your community, you vote for improvement in your community, that’s what you vote for. Naturally I belong to a political party and I will support people who support my views but at the same time all of you must vote people in your community who are capable of representing you”.
Additionally, Granger divulged that sometime ago he was invited to Fyrish, Corentyne, Berbice by the local NDCs to discuss local issues. According to him, water issues, the need for lights within communities, deplorable roads and bridges were among the main issues highlighted. According to him, two months later a National Conference on local democratic organs was convened to allow all NDCs and municipalities to come together and deal with issues raised within communities, “because local government deals with local issues”.
Meanwhile, the President also mentioned the changes that took place in the Guyana Police Force in an effort to improve the quality of policing in the country.
“I have asked the police to consider a form of community policing which allows the sub-divisional commanders and the Divisional Commanders from time to time to meet with the residents of the community to discuss the security of those communities. The police are your friends and you have to work closely with them”.
The President explained that “this is all part of the consciousness which I expect local government to generate, a community spirit not a battle between political parties but a collective endeavor to makes these communities safe”.
In closing he urged the residents to mobilise, organise, register and to educate each other and the respective communities on the role that has to be played in local government and to also make local government work after the elections.