… as night spots and patrons put under strain

It has been almost two months since the Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan, under the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Administration, enforced the 02:00h curfew and many of the popular night spots around the country are experiencing significant plunges in sales as they comply with the law and new forms of economic hardships.

Guyana Times spoke with a number of businesses in the Capital City as well as outer Georgetown, all of which indicated that sales have plummeted since the enforcement of the curfew. Navin Singh, General Manager of Gravity Lounge told this newspaper that the Lounge made the necessary changes to abide by the law and is still transitioning.

Singh explained that initially, there was a dip in the sales and business activities as a whole. As such, the entity had to strategise in order to up their profitability. “We had to introduce early drink specials to get people out early because people usually go out around 11:00 (23:00h) so now we are seeing people out around 09:30h (21:30h)-10:00h (22:00h),” he stated.

Nevertheless, the General Manager noted that persons are now getting used to the curfew and so sales have since picked up a bit.

However, the General Manager explained that there are some patrons who are still grappling with the fact that the business has to close at 02:00h. He said at that time, persons are really into the party mode and so they get disappointed and at times become upset when they are told the party is closed off. Meanwhile, Seelall Parbo, General Manager of Buddy’s Entertainment Complex, pointed out that the curfew had a significant impact on sales over the past weeks. He said that trend is not at all encouraging to continue business.

He outlined that with the curfew enforced, there has been a decrease in the number of persons coming out at nights because persons usually come out late and do not have enough time to enjoy themselves.

Parbo added that their business is being affected in two ways – once at the door and then at the bar. “We have less people coming out now so we don’t get a lot of tickets sold to go in the club and this in turn affect sales at the bar because with less people in the club, we have less sales,” he explained.

Businesses want review The General Manager further outlined that he hopes businesses and other stakeholders do not get comfortable with this new arrangement as he is hopeful the curfew would be reviewed. In fact, he proposed that the 02:00h curfew be enforced on week days, while on the weekends they are allowed to go a little later.

Additionally, Parbo highlighted that if Government is looking to reduce crime and fatal accidents, they should try looking at those areas – mostly outer Georgetown – where this is prevalent. He noted that most of the clubs are enclosed so there is no noise nuisance and at least for his business there is ample parking space hence there is no traffic build up in the area.

On this note, a few businesses along the East Coast and East Bank of Demerara (requested not to be named) explained to this publication that while the Public Security Minister’s intensions are laudable, taking into consideration the country’s high crime rates, with all the night spots all closed at 02:00h then more people would be on the roads trying to get home. This, it was explained, is likely to cause more accidents.

Furthermore, it was underscored that with nowhere else to go after 02:00h, patrons still in their party mode tend to continue the partying on the roadways which can prove to be more dangerous. In addition, the businessmen opined that even though alcohol can be a negative influence if abused, at least a venue should be provided for persons to socialize in the communities rather than them being on the streets, possibly finding themselves in more trouble than they would have, had they remained in a bar or club.

On July 4, Minister Ramjattan stated that it was his belief that the late opening of bars and nightclubs was linked to increasing crime, as well as persons driving under the influence of alcohol – which leads to more vehicular accidents.

He is of the strong view that the enforcement of the 02:00h curfew will help curtail such lawlessness. According to the Intoxicating Liquor Licensing Act, the Minister is required to set a close-off time for businesses operating with liquor licenses and the stipulated time on those licenses is 02:00h. The imposition of the 02:00h curfew, therefore, is nothing new but rather is an existing law which was being breached.

Increase in serious crime Meanwhile, a review of the Police statistics as it relates to the month before and after the curfew was imposed, revealed an increase in the number of serious crimes for the two months but this is compared with figures for the same period in 2014.

At the end of June, there was a nine per cent increase in serious crimes as compared to the corresponding period last year. A total of 79 murders were recorded, representing a 14 per cent increase while armed robberies saw an overall decline of six per cent.

At the end of July, there was a 10 per cent increase in serious crimes, compared to the same period last year. Murders for last month were pegged and 94, reflecting an 18 per cent increase; however robberies under arms were again down by two per cent, all in comparison with figures from last year. As it relates to traffic, 56 road fatalities were recorded from 45 accidents in June and in July, we saw 71 road fatalities from 58 accidents