For the second time in recent months President Bharrat Jagdeo has excluded the Private Sector Commission (PSC) from plans for a business summit and a meeting to discuss issues of concern. It was the PSC, which led the process for the 1999 historic Presidential Business Summit and the reasons for its exclusion were unclear yesterday.
The President invited the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Guyana Manufacturers' Association (GMA) and the regional chambers of commerce to a meeting yesterday at the Office of the President, the second within a few weeks. The first meeting took place late last year and the PSC had been sidelined from that as well.
"I am concerned. The PSC was not invited (to either meeting) and the government appears to be making a concerted effort to bypass the commission. The PSC is the leading private sector organisation in the country and most of the organisations the President met yesterday are members of the PSC. What kind of signal is the government sending? This does not send the right signal to local or foreign investors," Chairman of the PSC, Peter de Groot said when contacted by Stabroek News on the issue yesterday.
The PSC yesterday sought to ascertain from the Office of the President the reason it was bypassed and was told that invitations were sent out on the basis of a list obtained from the President's office.
GMA President, Ramesh Dookhoo, contacted for a comment on the issue and asked whether he was concerned, said the President repeated yesterday that he would meet with the PSC at another forum.
Dookhoo told Stabroek News the meeting was intended for the President to listen to private sector concerns and to plan for the next business summit. Dookhoo and businessman Brian James, among others, were named to a committee to work out the modalities of the next summit.
But the acceptance of the invitation by the GMA is said to be a worrying sign for private sector unity. Sources said that had the President met only the chambers of commerce, it would not have been cause for concern. But the GMA was invited to both meetings, an indication that it was intended for the wider private sector.
A statement from the Government Information Agency (GINA) yesterday on the meeting gave the impression that the parties the President met represented the entire private sector and said a follow up meeting is planned for the first week in April. These meetings are to be quarterly.
The released quoted Manniram Prashad, the President's adviser on investment, as saying that the decision was taken at the meeting to have the second business summit during the second quarter and a committee was formed to prepare position papers and the agenda for this summit. Those on the planning committee are Dookhoo, James, Joshua Safeek of the West Demerara Chamber, Samuel Arjoon of the Essequibo Chamber, Rohan Marray of the Berbice Chamber and Mumtaz Ali of the Association of Regional Chambers.
These associations, the release said, will also be meeting Finance Minister, Saisnarine Kowlessar shortly for their inputs into the 2004 budget.
James, contacted for a comment, said among the issues discussed were the crime situation, the Berbice bridge, a cargo agreement to trade with Brazil, the budget, the format of the business summit and the need for consensus on international trading arrangements. He said the President indicated that the feasibility study for the Berbice Bridge will be done before June and he is considering a public/private sector-financing model for the project.
On the issue of Home Affairs Minister, Ronald Gajraj, James said the President asserted he will not act on allegations and wants proof before he takes any action against the minister.
The President also hinted at involving the private sector as advisers for capital projects, James said.
The GINA statement says Prashad is to arrange a meeting between the Commissioner of the Guyana Revenue Authority and the organisations attending that meeting to discuss customs issues under the new legislation.
The PSC is the umbrella private sector organisation comprising the GMA, the Berbice Chamber and the shipping association among others, as well as a host of corporate entities including Banks DIH, Demerara Distillers Ltd and the National Bank of Industry and Commerce.