Chicken flap
Marks refutes blackmail claim
Says company evaded duties
Stabroek News
October 15, 2002
Commissioner of Customs and Trade Administration (CTA) Lambert Marks is refuting allegations of blackmail against his department and says he will not be dragged into politics.
Marks hastily called a press conference at his Main Street, Georgetown office yesterday to “clarify” an article published in yesterday’s Kaieteur News (KN) which accused officials in the CTA of forcing a city businessman to pay around $5M as additional duties and penalties on a shipment of chicken.
Marks said the companies in question, Marine Foods and ICS, owned by E.C. Vieira and Patrick Mekdeci respectively, had violated the Customs Act by attempting to evade duties. Neither Marine Foods nor ICS could be reached yesterday afternoon for comment on the matter.
According to the KN article, Marine Foods had imported 500,000 pounds of chicken bought from ICS with a landed value of 21 US cents per pound. It further contended that based on the contract supplied by the importers, CTA set the duties which were duly paid. It was later found that CTA was contending that the two companies were related and “as a result this necessitated a specific declaration”.
Marks said yesterday that “Marine Foods, owned by Vieira, produced a contract to ICS, owned by Patrick Mekdeci, for the importation of 2.5 million pounds of chicken leg quarters. Based on this contract, Marine Foods declared the chicken leg quarters at 21 US cents per pound, as compared to 27 US cents per pound as declared by other importers, including the very Marine Foods, prior to the shipment in question.”
Marks said his department, after investigations, raised the declared price from 21 US cents to 27 US cents and the duties and taxes were recomputed. In the end, Marine Foods had to pay about $300,000 in duties and a similar amount as compensation, in keeping with sections 217 and 218 of the Customs Act.
“Section 218 (b) stipulates authority of three times the duty and taxes that were attempted to be hidden. Marine Foods, once found to be in violation of the law, willingly paid the additional duties, C-Tax and compensation.
At no time was Marine Foods blackmailed or held to ransom. Finally it should be noted that in 2001, another (named businessman) at the very Vieira wharf at Houston, after collusion with a customs officer to defraud the Customs of revenue...had to pay additional duties and compensation in excess of $600,000.
The customs officer was dismissed. So you can see it is not a one-time affair.”
“It should be noted that Vieira and Mekdeci are business partners, but claim differently in the declaration... This, in essence, is... tantamount to establishing a contract that is set for your own benefit,” Marks told reporters.
The KN article said that while Vieira and Mekdeci were related by blood, the two companies were not related.
Marks said: “I wish to refute the article. I think it is deliberately trying to put a political [twist] on the matter, and wickedly so.
I am not surprised that the Kaieteur News tries to drag me into politics”.
Another allegation by the newspaper was that the demand for money came six weeks after the shipment of chicken had landed into the country and one day after the brother of the Marine Foods owner, Tony Vieira had blasted the government and President Bharrat Jagdeo in one of his commentaries.
But Marks offered: “I wish to say that if (Tony) Vieira had a problem with the government, let him resolve his difference with government and don’t drag me into it. I am not a politician. I am a professional serving the people of Guyana.”
Absent yesterday were reporters from Kaieteur News and Prime News. Prime News Producer, Adam Harris is the Monday editor of Kaieteur News, the same issue in which the story appeared. Harris could not be contacted for comment yesterday afternoon.
A row between Marks and Kaieteur News escalated in June this year during a probe into the CTA.
Marks, on that occasion, charged that he had been pressured over the clearing of containers and had accused his then superior, Commissioner General of the Guyana Revenue Authority Edgar Heyligar of interfering and not acting to counter claims that he (Marks) had acted irregularly. Heyligar has since withdrawn his services from the GRA.
At the centre of that controversy was Kaieteur News Publisher Glenn Lall and Bhena’s Footwear, owned by Lall’s wife. (Kim Lucas)