Why Bharrat ent scrap the Property Tax?
Cassandra's Candid Corner
* Let's continue a wee bit with the theme "truth as comedy". Sunday Stabroek's editorial of 4.4.99 had me in stitches, even though they stole my thunder. I was going to poke some fun at all the parties involved, especially the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Protocol Section. They tried to make us believe that the whole issue of the Venezuelan Ambassador's non-invitation came down to the inefficiency of the office assistant. Poor fellow, he would have shared the blame with his counterpart who should have cleared the letter box into which the supposed invitation was placed. Then Excellency Azocar bus' de bag by stating (what would have been my punch line) that neither the Embassy nor his home has a letter box. Well, as a good ambassador (and he is good: he dances good, he socialises good, he judges Miss Guyana-Universe contest ... well, perhaps not so good. He is a real nice fun fellow full of life; in fact he could come from Barataria in Trinidad), he says stop the nonsense correspondence on the issue and let the good relations between Guyana and Venezuela prevail. (Good relations? Their Foreign Minister had the entire Ministry of Foreign Affairs in chaos lately when he arrived in Guyana inexplicably and unapologetically late; Venezuela's flag still has seven stars, while the country has only six Provinces - the seventh representing Essequibo and environs, etc.) Anyway back to this invitation. Where is it? Who has it? Enquiring minds want to know, and I want to hold me belly and laugh and throw meself down like Guyanese at a vacuous Link Show. * Enough laff! I want to get semi-serious for a moment. Only for a moment though. Let's look at the budget. (I say stop laffing.) We'll look at only one aspect of Bharrat's brainchild (or is it still-birth?) The Property Tax. Bharrat raised the threshold. Why the hell he ent scrap the whole thing? Listen to this story and doh think ah getting senile because ah saying the same thing again, but someone have to put sense in dey head. And to besides, this story is both thought provoking and true. A man was born and raised in one of the worst ghettos Georgetown has produced. By some magic or fate (or faith?) he struggled through this excruciating and stultifying environment and emerged with a lil bit of book learning which eventually ensured him a scholarship to study in a country where racism and covert atrocities against minorities were perpetrated as an established way of life, and during which time the government oft forgot to send a bit of stipend, thus ensuring prolonged agony during pressurised studies in a foreign language. On graduation, armed with the accumulated knowledge, this man returned (unlike his contemporaries and peers) to the Mudland and, out of conviction and the philosophy, deposited himself in the bush and skimped and saved and got malaria and bush yaws. In the end, he returned to the metropolis (anything beyond the bush and with more than 1000 people is big time city in Guyana and bought a house in the seventies for fifty thousand dollars (Guyana dollars, so that you don't get confused). And he put some couple sticks of furniture and appliances and some miscellaneous meche meche in the house. And lo and behold, it came to pass that this kennel in a supposed upper class(?) area, because of all yuh inflation, is now valued at G$15 million. And the man still wukkin for de guvament and enjoying (I like that word) a government salary. This man must still pay Property Tax? No, I say. We all should say NO WAY, MR TAX MAN. In Trinidad, one gets tax write offs for just painting and nicing up one's house. But here, these vampires want to tax a poor civil servant owning a house with a lil bit of content. Come on Bharrat, have a heart and give us a real ease. Scrap the iniquitous Property Tax for those people working in your ministries and allied offices. * What's this I hear? Members of the Constitution Reform Commission (CRC) are wondering why people are not coming forward to make contributions to alter that important document for the better. Well, after decades of non-stop bludgeoning of the population with Party Paramountcy and other elements of direct and indirect intimidatioin, we now have a citizenry which really doesn't give a hoot (that's not the word I wanted to use). We have a softened, unconscious, disbelieving, distrusting set of people whose only consideration is how to set themselves "right" in these hard times. Perhaps we are just not educated enough to understand the value of a good constitution. Look, even members of the CRC have been known not to arrive for discussions. One time, they didn't even have a quorum (but they asking for extra money). Fellas, do your best. Try to be as comprehensive and all-encompassing as you can. Forget party affiliation (easy for me to say). If you listen to either group your constitution will be a recipe for chaos and catastrophe. 
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