As is currently the case with many other countries, Guyana is facing extremely tough economic times, with not only one but two major threats to our economic survival – the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) and a stubborn APNU/AFC Government fighting to the very end to stay on in power.
In spite of the Appellate Court’s ruling on Sunday dismissing the case which sought to block the national recount of the votes cast in the March 2 polls, the drama continues at the level of the GECOM Commission and within the hierarchy of the APNU/AFC. Government-appointed GECOM Commissioners and lawyers representing the APNU/AFC candidate Ulita Moore are giving all sorts of different, confusing interpretations of the Court’s ruling and the methodology that should be used to carry out the recount.
They are also providing their own view of what happens after the recount is completed and what the results of the recount mean to the parties that contested the polls and the nation as a whole. One GECOM Commissioner went as far as implying that even after having gone through the recount process, it is not certain that the results would be used to declare a winner. So, what’s the point in doing a recount in the first place?
It is clear as each day passes by, that there is a ‘diehard’ faction within the PNC/APNU/AFC who are not in favour of having a credible and well-supervised recount, or even if they have it, would use every trick in the book once again to thwart the process and create unnecessary controversy as their aim is to hold on to power at all costs, even if it means the country is kept at a standstill for many more months or destroyed altogether.
The nation’s patience is running thin. Citizens are already heavily stressed about having to deal with COVID-19. There is currently a situation where the caretaker Government has imposed a one-month partial lockdown on the nation to combat the spread of the virus without any planned economic relief measures in place for citizens.
At the moment, thousands of persons are unemployed, prices for basic food commodities have gone up and are rising steadily due to panic buying over the past few weeks, the utility companies continue to send bills that must be paid, households are forced to purchase additional items such as sanitisers and medical supplies to protect themselves against the coronavirus, and small businesses are forced to close, etc.
While many countries around the world have justifiably instituted partial or full lockdown and other measures to contain the spread of COVID-19, they have all taken steps to provide relief measures to citizens so as to avoid much bigger social and economic problems. Their Governments are well aware that families would need some form of support to cushion the impact of such drastic measures. As pointed out by Nigel Hinds, a local business executive and politician, in a letter to the media, over 45 countries have announced economic relief measures that were summarised and published by the Tax Foundation of the United States.
We support the calls being made for immediate action to be taken by all the relevant stakeholders to cushion the impact of the coronavirus on individuals and businesses. The Private Sector Commission (PSC) in particular has made some important recommendations in relation to various tax waivers and suspension of financial household commitments; these include removal of mortgage interests and payments during this time, and to immediately raise the threshold to accommodate no taxation for employees earning $65,000 to $100,000 who were sent off the job.
The PSC has also called for the Government to consider the removal of Value Added Tax (VAT) on food items, detergents, mobile data services and household and medical cleansers. Along with this, the PSC has suggested a temporary removal of the requirement to pay income and corporation taxes upfront, reduced excise taxes on fuel, and emergency funding for small establishments or businesses at risk of closure.
Several other organisations have also made recommendations in relation to utility companies deferring payments and/or reducing charges by at least 50 per cent; the suspension of income and corporation taxes until September and direct payments to citizens, such as unemployment payments.
It clearly does not make any sense to implement a nationwide lockdown and there are no proper support or relief measures in place to assist households and businesses. This is causing severe hardships on everyone and must urgently be fixed.
