Cheaper Transportation for Berbice River Users

guyana chronicle editorial

OUR editorial in last Tuesday’s edition called on the government to ensure that when it comes to vital social services such as transportation, the people are not held to ransom by the logic of the market. While we believe that the private sector is a critical partner in the process of national development, we feel that it is the people who are the primary factor. We are, therefore, heartened that the government has moved very swiftly to protect the people who frequently use the Berbice River Bridge.The announcement that the government has decided to make available cheaper transportation for the people via the introduction of water taxis should be commended by all who stand on the side of fairness. In this the age of private capital, it is not often that a government confronts a private company in defence of ordinary people. If this is a signal of things to come, then we may well see a Guyana where there is a more even balance between the rights and interests of private capital and the citizens. The refusal of Berbice Bridge Company Incorporated (BBCI) to so far honour the request of the government for a reduction of the toll is the height of disrespect for the government. But more than that, it represents an insensitivity to the concerns of the poor. It is not that the bridge company will be refunded the money it would have otherwise lost from the reduction of the toll. In fact, Finance Minister Winston Jordan has said the company will be given a lump sum in advance based on projected revenue shortfalls as a result of the toll reduction. If there is a shortfall, the company will be paid the outstanding amount, and if the lump sum is greater, the additional funds would be rolled over to the next month. Far too often, private companies have taken advantage of the vulnerability of governments in the Caribbean when it comes to attracting investments. They have bullied governments into accepting agreements that are injurious to the interests of the people. Governments end up ensuring that which is good for the investor rather than what is good for the people and the country. We are not unaware that investors must realise benefits from their investments; that is the primary objective of their investment. But there must be a balance between the quest for profits and the affordability of the service. We are a relatively poor country. The cost of the toll could determine whether children go to school or not, or whether pensioners travel to visit relatives or to attend to other necessary matters. Or it could determine how much the taxi driver or operator earns on a given day. These are bread and butter issues that have far reaching consequences. We now hear that the operation of the water taxis is a violation of the agreement between BBCI and the government. But the government has correctly pointed to the fact that the agreement speaks to protection against competition in the transportation of vehicles, but not people. It is our hope that the government and the BBCI could eventually come to some agreement. We believe that the bridge is a critical aspect of the transportation network in the Berbice area. In the meantime, relief to the people must not be stalled.