$23B “allocation” for rice  farmers not in  estimates

Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo

Tale of deception continues…

…no “real money” just “fluff and rhetoric” – Jagdeo

BY DEVINA SAMAROO

Rice farmers, and by extension the rest of Guyana, have been deceived into believing that $23 billion was allocated to the rice industry. The People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C), which now sits on the Opposition side of the House, on Thursday confirmed that no such provision was made for the industry.

Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo in an early morning interview with the press said Finance Minister Winston Jordan was unable to point out the $23 billion which was promised to rice farmers during the consideration of the Budget Estimates. According to him, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance for Change (APNU/AFC) Government has misled the nation into the believing the $23 billion was real money.

Former Junior Finance Minister Juan Edghill

“What he is effectively doing is bringing in the PetroCaribe proceeds as a public debt,” Jagdeo explained. In support of the Opposition Leader, former Junior Finance Minister Juan Edghill, during a press conference at Freedom House on Thursday, iterated that government is trying to dupe Guyanese.

“When the question was asked last night [Wednesday], no sensible answer was given. Then you have in the budget speech he made references to budgetary allocation, $23 billion for the rice farmers… low and behold we cannot find this $23 billion anywhere in the estimates, that is a serious indictment on the public accountability system in our country and it makes hollow the commitment of this Finance Minister,” he said, noting that the budget presentation speech was all fluff and rhetoric.

“… $23 billiob for rice farmers… there is no such allocation in the budget… so rice farmers what they got was nice gaff…,” he said.

Following the announcement by Finance Minister Jordan that rice farmers will be receiving $23 billion, Opposition Leader Jagdeo had expressed his satisfaction with the provision, lauding the Government for actually keeping its promise.

“I hope that it’s real money, because it will allow APNU/AFC to pay the $6000 and $9000 bag per paddy they promised the farmers. We will support it. We hope that it is real money and beginning next week, we will have the disbursement of $23 billion to the farmers. We are in support of that,” Jagdeo noted.

Rice farmers deceived into believing that $23 billion was allocated to the rice industry

Government had in early June allocated the $800 million to the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) to begin paying millers, who would in turn pay rice farmers. Millers had reportedly owed rice farmers across the country some $6 billion for the supply of paddy.

Several rice farmers recently complained to Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam) PPP/C Councillor Sobodh Kishore about being owed monies. Kishore said many farmers were still owed millions by prominent millers and commercial banks were calling those farmers who took loans for repayment. Kishore said the situation was very frustrating and called on Government to assist the farmers.

The millers in Guyana seem to be developing a reputation of failing to pay rice farmers on time. Owing to the millers’ constant failure to pay rice farmers over the years, the amount owed had grown to some $6 billion, which they were unable to settle because of the outstanding amounts owed to them by the Government.

Agriculture Minister Noel Holder had explained that the money owed to the millers by the Government was not a “stop and wait” situation as monies were constantly coming in to pay them. Holder explained that the amount owed was constantly fluctuating, because when the Government received money from the markets and paid off the millers, the outstanding amount decreases. Whereas when the Government collects rice from the millers on a credit basis to supply the markets, the outstanding figure increases.

For years now, many have been complaining of the exploitation of the rice farmers at the hands of millers. They argueD that the millers continuously ignore the Rice Factory Act, which stipulates that rice farmers should be paid in full within 42 days of receipt of produce and, if not, the miller is bound by law to pay farmers interest that is two per cent higher than the going interest rate of the Bank of Guyana.