[www.inewsguyana.com] – Prime Minster Moses Nagamootoo has announced that school children, nurses and pensioners will be able to travel free for one month, starting on Monday, September 21 via the Berbice River Taxi.
The announcement was made on September 18, during the opening ceremony of the11th annual Berbice Expo and Trade Fair.
“We are going to provide this service initially for one month so that we bring relief to the many poor, vulnerable and disadvantaged people in our community,” the Prime Minister said.
He explained that the APNU+AFC government is taking such a measure to reinforce the message to the bridge company that the government will not give up until the toll for crossing the Berbice River Bridge is dropped.
“The present fare is unconscionable and un-payable and they must reduce,” the Prime Minister said.
At the budget presentation on August 10, Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan had announced that the government would subsidize the Berbice Bridge Company Incorporated (BBCI) the amount that is lost from the reduced fares.
While passenger vehicles would enjoy a fixed reduction with the fares expected to drop from $2200 to $1900, other vehicles would have been granted a 10% reduction from September 01. 2015. But due a stalemate between the government and the BBCI, the deal was rejected by the company.
As a result, the government came up with a plan B and announced the introduction of the water taxi service to ply the Rosignol/ New Amsterdam route.
The Bridge Company had announced that since the establishment, the company has not paid back it shareholders. They have indicated that if they agree to the terms of the tolls reduction, the Company can face possible bankruptcy.
The APNU+AFC Coalition tried to push for the reduction of the tolls, in keeping with its 100 days plans of taking office. Minister of State, Joseph Harmon recently noted that consultations are still ongoing with the Company to reduce the toll.
“We expect that good sense will prevail at the appropriate time and that they will decide to do what is the right thing,” the Minister said at a post cabinet media briefing during last week.
The ordinary shareholders s in the BBCI are the National Insurance Scheme, Hand-in-Hand, Demerara Contractors, New GPC and Secure International Finance Company, while State owned National Industrial and Commercial Investments Ltd (NICIL) and Queens Atlantic Investment Inc (QAII), which is controlled by Dr. Bobby Ramroop, are the two largest shareholders.
Side Kick Guyana is becoming a “normal State” based on Burnham ideology. Is this what you called “normal state”
Nagamootoo is a power hungry drunk who will stoop to the lowest just for power. He cannot be trusted.
To answer your ? 23 yrs of FULL MY ACCOUNT as much as possible, the ppp and friends did very well for themselves
They thief so much they paying them off the books now, ELECTIONDEFEATSYNDROME is affecting the brain so expect nothing good coming from the losers.
What do you mean by, “fooled anymore”. Why is it that some of you are so narrow minded. The PPP has been is government for the past 23 years, hence they have become comfortable and have began to take Guyanese for granted. It is a well known fact that comfort makes ppl complacent. Many of the issues which Guyanese are faced with today didn’t come into effect overnight when the APNU/AFC government took office, lots of them have been there for several years while the PPP were in office, and they never sought to address them, for example the same Essequibo ferry service fare you are complaining about would have been set by the PPP government and they never saw the need for a reduction. I even heard one PPP member of Parliament during her budget debate mentioned that VAT continues to be a burden to the Guyanese ppl and the APNU/AFC government did not significantly to address it in their budget presentation. But the same “burden”as she referred to it was introduced by the PPP government, didn’t they realize it was a burden when the were in office and saw the need to address it. So I urge you my friend, let’s stop playing blind and being bias and give the new government a chance. We’ve survived 23 years under the PPP “RULE” and I deliberately chose the word rule because that’s what it was since during that era if you speak out or against you were victimized. What’s the worse that can happen under the leadership of the new Government over the next five years. It is yours as well as my democratic rights to vote them out after that time if we’re not satisfied with their progress. You do have a blessed bias free day.
There is no ferry presently working the Berbice area. Remember it was stopped by Jagdeo.
I think the government should sell the Marriott hotel and pay off the investors of the Berbice bridge, they can then take over the running of the bridge and lower the fare to $500.This money can go towards the maintenance of the bridge.
you’re absolutely right about the APNU/AFC short term plan for the river taxi , but while you’re so keen to point that out , would you like to tell us what were some of the PPP accomplishments in the last 23 years in Government?
Mossie when de one month done what will happen ???/ you will pay from your pocket., why don’t you try reduce the Essequibo ferry fare ?? You guys playing dead on that issues which the government have full control of, why people will want to wait for hours and days to cross the BERBICE river ferry and you have to pay bribery to cross ,or some times get rob over night waiting to cross ,losing a day of work is more expensive .than to pay the bridge fare , this government is always looking for a way to attack. Jagdeo and the PPP so how can these fools tell the nation the are willing to work in unity to built Guyana , ???? Guyanese can’t be fool anymore ,the know who and what the want because the APNU-AFC government is drive away investors from Guyana who is willing to help build a better life for Guyanese people
There ” must be a legal remedy ” for this blatant manipulation of a system to steal from tax payers. What else could this be ? It is classic white colour crime ! We have so many brilliant legal scholars yet it seems like a distant drum beating to the tune of ” there is no other way but to negotiate” with these common scamps . This approach has left our brilliant scholars wanting. At the same time tax payers are yearning with confusion which will eventually lead to real disapointment. The Gov’t has virtually all the legal mechanism to untangled this nasty illegal money-tree (The Berbice Bridge Co )…….which was clearly designed to enrich a few greedy bastards……….These scamps need to be brought justice !
What Moses failed to tell Berbician is that they will pay the same rate for electricity as lindeners.
Maharanee, you and DK sound like two voices in the wilderness. Your hatred for Nagamootoo rival your sense of fairness. You view Nagamootoo as a betrayor of the clan. Go get a life, things are changing and Guyana is becomming a normal state.
I really thought they got rid of the paid political bloggers, but I guess you and Kwayme working out of Freedumb house now huh , don’t worry yourself , you and, your friends will be blogging from the opposition pulpit for a very long time to come , David and Moses is here to stay , you will soon pop a blood vessel in your shallow brains .
The government should not take this approach. It should let private operators run the water taxi service, with government setting safety and operational standards, including fares, and ensuring compliance with same.The other aspect is going to parliament if necessary and amending the Berbice Bridge Company articles to ensure fair representation of government on the board to protect government investments, ensure a fair return to all investors, and provide a voice for the users of the bridge. The government has the information tools at its disposal to let the local and international communities see that the current management structure of the Berbice Bridge approved by the Jagdeo regime only serves to ensure exorbitant returns to a minority group who are friends of former President Jagdeo. That would have been fine if the people of Guyana were not so heavily invested in the bridge without any voice. By the way real public private partnerships are a great way to get build out of infrastructure. The current management structure of the Berbice Bridge is far from global best practices.
“The present fare is unconscionable and un-payable and they must reduce,” the Prime Minister said.
Is it not the same price as the ferry?
Big Mozes wanting so much love from Berbicians now since he get the old hehow boot in he ass at Whim where the clown was
born
And what happens after the one month freeness? Apparently the clique in power can’t see more than a month ahead.
Great move Mr. Prime Minister. Shows your administrations concern for the people something the stone hearted and greedy would not understand.