What the dying gold industry really wants
Dear Editor, Any new Government that takes office is allowed a honeymoon period. With many new faces on the APNU/AFC coalition, it would only be fair. Four months have passed since the new administration took office. The people of Guyana have expectations. We voted for change. It is only natural. Nowhere in the world would any right-thinking persons want less. I have been following the current gold mining situation in Guyana. Two years ago, there were praises being sung. The miners could do no wrong. The PPP/C Government was happy as the significant foreign exchange left the country looking pretty. Then it all came crashing down. The world prices fell and miners, many of them with heavy commitments to the banks, suppliers and other creditors, were left holding the bag. Many miners went out of business. Many big operations reduced their activities. Excavators were repossessed and parallel to this we saw a surge in crime. The miners have been asking for relief. They want duty free pickups, relief on spares and a slash in the fuel taxes. Editor, we have been examining the situation and know now that GGDMA and others want a reduction in the land rentals charged by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission. The reality is that Government appears hard-pressed to make certain concessions. We have been talking for years now with the past PPP/C government. All we heard were promises and more promises. I humbly submit that the reduction of land rentals from GGMC is not something that would benefit Government which needs all the revenues that can be brought in. Rather, this would only benefit a few big miners that controls the hinterlands, acting as landlords and collecting billions in “rent” from small miners (landlordism). What miners want is an immediate reduction in the cost for fuel. We, the small and medium scale miners, are asking for the same level playing -10 percent taxes on fuel charged on large foreign companies. If one is to check, they would find that we have the same competing equipment, if not more, than these large, foreign miners. More than a year ago, according to data, the mining industry was using about two-thirds of the fuel in Guyana. This translated to 9M gallons. Today, we have plummeted down to half of that. Back then, the fuel tax was about 15 percent. Earlier this year, the previous administration raised this to 45 percent before the elections. Today, Editor, miners are suffering tremendously. Ask GGDMA and they will tell you that many operations are being closed. They will tell you of the thousands of workers that have been sent home. Fuel in the biggest expense in gold mining. It brings money to the coffers of the Government. With sugar doing badly and the rice market uncertain, there is a sure fire way that Government can stimulate the economy. We are not asking for alms. Dropping of the fuel taxes will allow the miners to restart operations. Workers will be rehired. Royalties will be paid. Other spinoff effects will include the vendors from whom vegetables, chicken, rice are being bought; the tolls at the crossings in Linden and the waterways; VAT from spares; the shopping from families of workers, the rise in fuel sales…need we go on? Gold still has it shine. We just need to think out of the box. All Guyana should benefit. The answer is not dropping rental price for our mining properties…the answer is the immediate reduction of that 45 percent fuel tax. It is killing miners. The increase should only benefit miners who are legitimately selling their gold to the Guyana Gold Board and other recognized dealers who have the receipts to prove it. We can go on and on but here is quick fire way to halt the downward spiral. It will reverse the problem facing the economy. We are not asking for alms. We are asking for a level playing field and some smart thinking. The economy will naturally do the rest. T. Jason
