Dodging the political crossfire

Oct 23, 2018 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

The controversy over the toll increase proposed by the Berbice Bridge Company Inc. is regrettably being turned into a blame-game. On the one hand, the government and its supporters are blaming the PPPC for the problem which they see is as a result of a flawed financial model.
The PPPC, on the other hand, is of the view that the proposed increase is a political gimmick engineered by the Alliance for Change in order to resurrect its political fortunes.
The public is caught in this vicious divide. The supporters of the government are unwilling to consider that the proposed increases may be a political gimmick to allow the AFC to seem to be coming to the rescue of users of the bridge.
The PPPC supporters, on the other hand, do not wish to concede that there is a perverse governance model which assigns minority shareholders a commanding influence over the Board.
The government is not helpless. The government owns more than 80% of the shares, if you add it those that it acquired for $45M from DDL. For all intents and purposes the government holds a commanding majority of the shares in the Bridge but because of the flawed governance model is not in absolute control of the Board.
There are easy solutions to the controversy involving the proposed bridge tolls. The government can consider waiving dividends for a fixed period, or extending the deadline for the bridge to be handed over free of cost to the State. The government, through the Minister of Finance, has long indicated, also, an interest in buying out the minority shareholders, once the price is right.
The announcement by the bridge company of massive increases in tolls may be a ploy by those minority shareholders to force the government to buy them out. Or it could be a political tactic to make the AFC seem to be a saviour to Berbice.
The verdict will be divided on these issues because of the political divisions. One group of persons will side with the government in blaming the PPPC and the other side will say that it is the present government’s actions which have brought the matter to this stage.
Political polarization is hardening with each passing day and will not help resolve this conflict. There is a need for an independent perspective. What is needed is a civil society grouping organization to be established to try to find non-partisan solutions to problems in Guyana.
In the case of the bridge controversy, what is needed is an independent financial analysis – something that should not take more than a week – which would provide options on the way forward. The annual reports of the Bridge Company are already public and the contracts – including the concession agreement and the financial model – can easily be made available to whomever is conducting the independent analysis. Because of political mistrust any opinion by a local firm will be treated with suspicion.
The Private Sector Commission should consider this type of intervention. It should identify an independent financial firm outside of Guyana with no links at all to Guyana and ask them to come up with the analysis and options.
The cost should not be beyond the means of the captains of industry and commerce. The various business organizations in Berbice which are so concerned about the effects of the new tolls on their economy should help fund the study. This is not a time to be tight-fisted but a time to find solutions to the problems of this country by offering independent viewpoints and analysis.
It is something worth doing and worth financing. The government will not contract an independent opinion because it has its own agenda. And so civil society will have to find the resources if it is serious about resolving the problem.
A new approach is needed to the country’s problems. That approach should involve solving problems and finding solutions, instead of getting caught in the polarization and crossfire which blights almost every political and economic dispute.

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