Dear Editor,
I must commend the Ministry of Home Affairs for the consideration given to citizens who have imported vehicles that have a manufacturer’s tint. The issuance of a tint waiver in order to continue using one’s vehicle is a good solution. I must however challenge the powers that be to pay more attention to detail regarding the implementation of this programme. A situation has now developed in Bartica whereby owners who have vehicles with a manufacturer’s tint are only issued with one month’s fitness at the local traffic office.
They are told that this is to give them time to go to the ministry and obtain the tint waiver to allow them to continue driving.
Editor, this is simply impractical, given the fact that the tint of the vehicle has to be tested at the GRA before the process for the tint waiver can even get underway. Are we saying that all these vehicle owners will be able to put their vehicles on the ferry to Parika, go to Georgetown, go through the process laid out by the Minister and return to Bartica with their vehicles in time to continue their daily responsibilities? It indeed may be fairly easy to get your vehicle on the ferry from Bartica to Parika, but to get it back on in order to return to Bartica is another story, given the hassle involved in booking a place on the ferry. Even if this process was more easily achievable, it would mean taking a lot of time off work or the loss of many days of business if one is self-employed.
I would humbly suggest that the Ministry of Home Affairs, Guyana Revenue Authority and Guyana Police Service have some consideration for the citizens of Bartica (and any other village/town similarly affected by this issue) and implement a less tedious and time-consuming system to facilitate vehicle owners whose vehicles were bought with a manufacturer’s tint.
Yours faithfully,
(Name and address provided)
