Prime Minister Mark Phillips on Saturday said that there is no plan by the PPP/C government to increase the power tariff in Linden.
“Contrary to lies being peddled by Mr. Aubrey Norton, Leader of the PNC to the people of Linden. The Government of Guyana has no plans to increase the electricity rates paid by the people of Linden,” Phillips said.
Norton, while meeting with staff of the Linden Utility Services Cooperative Society Limited (LUSCL), which is responsible for power supply in the township, suggested on Saturday that plans are afoot by the government to remove the subsidy on electricity in the region.
His comments were made in light of the recent change in management of the LUSCL, which he claimed is a political act. The management committee of the LUSCL was last week dissolved and replaced by an Interim Management Committee (IMC) by the Chief Cooperatives Development Officer (CCDO) because of alleged mismanagement.
The electricity cost for Lindeners has been subsidised by the government for decades following the collapse of bauxite mining company Linmine which used to provide electricity to the township and the national grid. Since the collapse and the absence of a replacement, billions have been budgeted towards the subsidy. During the operations of Linmine, residents were provided with free electricity since it was produced in the region.
Phillips, in an address posted on his Facebook page, said the decision to suspend the management committee was due to “gross mismanagement” in the daily operations of the society.
“The CCDO replaced the management committee due to gross mismanagement and the interim, members are residents of Linden of good standing. They are tasked within six months to bring some order and financial discipline to that Co-op Society,” the Prime Minister, who holds the responsibility for the energy sector, said.
Norton, during his meeting with the staff in the compound of the Co-op Society, stated that the installation of the IMC is the first step through which the PPP/C government is seeking to control the management of the Society.
“They are seeking to put a management that they control and then they will be able to orchestrate it in such a way that they remove the subsidy and automatically the cost of electricity will go up and so you must see this as the beginning or the continuation of the previous fight … to get rid of the subsidy and our own fight to ensure that the subsidy stays and we have to do everything to ensure that the subsidy stays,” the presumed incoming Leader of the Opposition asserted.
But Phillips in his address said, “At no time is the government interested in taking control of the Linden Utility Services Cooperative Society Limited. At no time will the government direct the affairs of the Linden Utility Services Cooperative Society Limited and at no time did the government mention or pass any instructions to increase the electricity rates paid by the people of Linden,” he said.
In a video posted yesterday on his party’s Facebook Page rebutting the government’s dismissal of his claims, Norton said the suspension of the management committee is a violation of the Co-op Society Act.
He argued that an external inquiry should have been convened before the installation of an IMC. He claimed that the CCDO acted on the instructions of Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton to relieve the management committee of all their duties.
“It should be obvious to all Guyanese that the PPP has no good intention with Linden and I want to make it very, very clear that we are going to stand up to the PPP and ensure they are taken on,” the Party Leader said before declaring “we are going confront you and we are going to deal with it. We are not going to allow you to take a co-op society that has a long
history and by the stroke of a pen remove the leadership. It won’t happen, the battle has just begun.”
President Irfaan Ali yesterday dismissed Norton’s claim and said that he will not be focusing on negativity.
In a message to the people of Linden yesterday, Ali said “There is no differentiation with the people of Linden from the people of any other region. When we came into government we came with a banner `stronger together’. We will do nothing under our leadership that would make us weaker. We will do everything under our leadership to make us stronger under One Guyana.” He cautioned persons to beware of individuals who are engaged in spewing misinformation to instigate negativity against unity.
“We just came from Linden – an extensive and elaborate consultation where we ensure that the benefits that they have will continue,” the Head of State said on the sidelines of a visit to the Parika Market yesterday. In response to a question from Stabroek News, Ali said that there are developmental plans for Linden and spoke of the job opportunities that are being created in the telecommunications industry for residents.
In 2012, the then PPP/C government announced plans to gradually phase out the subsidy which would have eventually seen Lindeners paying the same rates for electricity as the rest of the country. Residents argued that they could not afford to pay the increased tariffs and took to the streets to protest the decision. Demonstrations turned violent after police intervention agitated protestors and three protesters were fatally shot.
Residential consumers there pay $5 per kWh while commercial consumers pay $12 per kWh.
