…on rice This Eyewitness believes you should never say “never”. But that doesn’t mean because an asteroid could just fall on your head if you step outdoors, you should become a hermit. You’ve got to look at the facts and weigh the probability of things happening. So let’s look at government officials assuring farmers that happy days are here again. The Minister of Agri (what’s his name again?) tells us that Panama and Portugal will soon pick up the glut caused by the Venezuelans moving to the greener rice fields of Suriname. We won’t even get into what role the stiff-necked approach of our government towards negotiations for renewal of the Venezuelan market played in that disastrous (for us) move. And it’s not just the assumption that Guyanese on the whole are daft, the government seems to think rice farmers in particular, must all be potential patients of that disreputable institution in Berbice. It’s not just a matter of “finding new markets”. If that’s the case we can have our own version of the US PL480 plan and ship rice free to countries as “aid”. To paraphrase an Americanism, “It’s the price, stupid!” From the farmers’ standpoint, the price Venezuela paid for our rice was a “premium one” by any measure – and especially in a depressed world market situation that confronts us right now. But from our national accounts standpoint, we were able to offer Guyana dollars that we print to our farmers – and not have to get foreign currency! Trust this Eyewitness, our export performance in sugar, bauxite and gold, just don’t make getting foreign currency such a cinch it once was. So back to Portugal and Panama. What’s the nonsense that we’re shipping a “comparable” an out of rice to Portugal as we did to Venezuela??! In 2014 we shipped just under US$17M to Portugal compared to over US$100M to Venezuela!! The entire Portuguese market doesn’t amount to US$70M… so we’re going to displace Suriname – which just displaced us with Venezuela! Pleeeeease!!! And what’s this bigger nonsense about Mexico? Mexico JUST re-imposed a 20% tariff on imported rice – to favour US rice which gets a free pass because of NAFTA! And as far as paddy’s concerned, Brazil just got a squeeze in. And they’re waaaay below us in prices. So that’s why the jet-setting Nagamootoo was forced to concede that all he could get from Mexico on rice was to “commercialise paddy”. Meaning Mexico advise on producing and marketing paddy!! With an extra 100,000 tonnes produced on top of the 200,000 tonnes sitting in silos because of the Venezuelan cancellation, farmers need that like a hole in their head!

…on economic growth The good book cautions those of “little faith”. But history’s proven that homily has more to do with matters of the spirit than of the flesh. And when it comes to material matters such as revving up and economy and such like, the better maxim is “God helps those who help themselves”. So this Eyewitness wonders just where Pressie’s getting the figures that give him such faith the economy will rebound to show an overall growth rate of 3.4% for the year. If the half-year growth was a pitiful 0.9%, it means that in the six months starting July 1, the economy will have to grow by 5.9%!! Even if the Cabinet spends their 50% salary heist hike and all the inflated perks, it’s not going to deliver that kind of growth – with sugar, rice, gold, fisheries and bauxite tanking. Word is, with the DEA finally establishing an office here, even the drug industry ain’t doing so well!

…on Divali Date Was it a Freudian slip, a sly choice or a Printer’s Devil? The Muckraker gave top billing to a number of Hindu worthies who pushed their Diwali date of Nov 10. The only problem was that the headline came out, “Guyana’s leading Hindu organisation’s say Divali date is NOV 11”!!!!