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Govt. to give 10 cubic meters of water to pensioners
Chief Executive Officer of the GWI, Shaik Baksh
Kaieteur News – Pensioners will receive 10 cubic metres of water free of charge from the Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) according to its newly appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Shaik Baksh. Baksh disclosed to another section of the media that the measure falls under the People’s Progressive Party government’s budgetary provisions and their campaign promise to provide pensioners with better incentives.
The CEO said that the 10 cubic metres of water equates to about five 400-gallon black tanks of water and is expected to last a pensioner and their partner (if they have)approximately a month. Baksh went on to say that after the allocated amount of water finishes only then the pensioners will be required to pay for the remaining amount of water used.
“We estimated that consumers were paying VAT [valued-added tax] in excess of $35 million a month, so this is a big relief for all consumers, especially the pensioners. That is why this Government saw it necessary to reinstate free water of ten cubic meters,” Baksh told the entity.
He explained that the free water will only be for pensioners who possess a water meter and also urged pensioners who have outstanding bills at GWI to visit their head office, as a system will be put in place to clear those bills since the measure was not “retroactive”.
In 2017, current Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo had called for free water and other incentives like the increase of old-age pension to be added the APNU+AFC’s 2018 Budget, as he believed there was the fiscal capacity for these incentives to be implemented. He had also asked for restoration of the “Because We Care” cash grant that saw schoolchildren receiving $10,000 grants for their necessary school-based needs – the PPP in their 2020 budget re-implemented that very cash grant, raising the amount to $15,000.
Further, the Vice President had pleaded for the removal of VAT from water, electricity and medical services, all of which were included in the National Budget of 2020, all of which take effect from January 2021. Other measures to provide relief to pensioners included the increase of old-age pension to $25,000. The government also sought to provide direct payment and home delivery of old age pensions amid the current COVID-19 pandemic in Guyana.
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