The Guyana Metal Recyclers Association is calling for the intervention of President Irfaan Ali to have the country’s scrap metal trade reopened after being shut down for months.
General Secretary of the association, Stephen Bourne, in an interview with Stabroek News yesterday, said that stakeholders in the industry have been affected severely by the stopping of the trade since late September 2020.
Bourne spoke to this newspaper just after the association held a meeting where stakeholders were invited to address concerns regarding the closure of the trade and its effects.
He noted that since November 2020 they have had continuous meetings with the Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce, Oneidge Walrond; Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn; and the head of the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU), James Singh, in relation to the closure and other measures. The association’s general secretary said that the industry’s trading was halted after drugs were found in a shipment of scrap metal in Belgium.
However, following an initial meeting he said that they were told that the trade would be reopened by late November. Subsequently, he noted, there was another meeting with the authorities where the association was asked to present documentation on persons involved in the scrap metal trade.
At that time, Bourne recalled, there was nothing mentioned about the reopening of the trade but in a follow-up meeting in February with CANU head James Singh and Guyana Revenue Authority Commissioner Rohan Beekhoo, the association was informed that there was no date set for the reopening of the trade.
“At this meeting they basically acknowledged receipt of all the documents… they told us that there was no date set for the reopening of the scrap metal trade but indicated that the reason why the trade was closed was mainly because of the drug bust that occurred in Belgium,” Bourne said.
The association was also informed that a reopening of the trade would have to wait until a new and improved scanner is installed by the GRA.
“We are asking that the president intervenes because we would have sent letters to the president… we got no feedback, we sent letters to the vice president, we tried every area seeking information on the trade.
We are saying that we cannot wait for the new scanner to be installed when every other export is continuing and drugs are being found in various commodities being exported and these trades are not being stopped,” the general secretary contended.
Bourne also pointed out that since the stopping of the trade, members have been facing several hardships. As such he indicated that the association would like for the president to intervene and have systems put in place as soon as possible so as to enable persons to get back to making a living since most of those involved in the trade depend solely on scrap metal for their livelihoods.
