Peter to pay for Paul, Paul to pay for all

Dear Editor,
Town Clerk Royston King has said that the City Council is owed billions of dollars by recalcitrant taxpayers, and that the City needs money for development, so the parking meters have been brought in to raise funds.
Speaking on the said parking meters, President David Granger has said, “Pay your taxes and let the city (be) run properly, and we won’t have to resort to these measures.”
From these two gentlemen’s statements, one gets the impression that they are not going after those recalcitrant taxpayers, but those who are not recalcitrant – to make them pay more; and to those who will visit the city, to squeeze them more financially.
GPL and GWI also are not really going after those who owe them millions, if not billions – like the very big businesses, Government ministries and agencies etc; but they are going after those who are paying, in order to squeeze them to pay more, then put another financial burden – VAT – on them, even though some are pensioners.
One ‘bright’ Minister has said, “If you can go to private doctors/hospitals for health care, then you have the money; so pay VAT.”
It does not matter who helped, or how you squeezed to pay the medicals bills; you have got to pay VAT. It does not matter whether or not the public institutions can provide the health care you need; also, it does not matter that if you go to the Georgetown Public Hospital to deliver your baby you run the risk of dying in the process, as has happened to many previously. Go and die, or pay VAT.
These Government officials do not care, because, should they need medical care, taxpayers’ money is used for them to go abroad for their treatment, at no cost to them.
President Granger said that VAT on Private Education will remain, as there are about 57 private schools and only about eight are tax compliant. So VAT will remain because they have to get their taxes by hook or crook, and from whomsoever. Therefore, they are ignoring those who are not paying, and will now tax the students – who are not earning a salary as yet – to make up for their loss in revenue.
Finance Minister Winston Jordan said students made a choice to go to private schools, so they must pay the VAT. He is forgetting that if the private schools were not around to accommodate the thousands of children, the Government schools would have been filled to capacity, as there are not enough public schools. Therefore, if they cannot afford to pay the VAT, they will have to quit school and remain as ‘brilliant’ as these ministers.
This Government is trying to squeeze ‘fat out of louse.’ They are not going after those recalcitrant taxpayers, but are squeezing the life out of those who are always paying. The question is: Why are they reluctant to go after all those tax dodgers? Are they their party comrades and buddy pals, or their political financial ‘investors?’
Guyanese must not be fooled. All these financial burdens foisted unto us are because they have to make up for the shortfall in revenue from rice, sugar and those tax waivers they are dishing out.

Yours sincerely,
Chandra Shekar Azad