Georgetown : Prime Minister Samuel Hinds who holds responsibility for the electricity sector in Guyana said that it is unconscionable for anyone to call for the initial subsidy that Lindeners were enjoying, to be maintained.
He was at the time speaking on a special programme along with PPP/C Member of Parliament, Manzoor Nadir, on the National Communications Network (NCN).
The PM explained that in 2011, the $2.6M of electricity subsidy to Linden averaged out to about $17,000 per month, per household and. This means, that about 4,000 to 5,000 domestic consumers in Linden received a subsidy of $204,000 per year each.
“With electricity prices subsidised by 90 percent or more in Linden, it does not make economic sense…the average consumption of power in Linden at the domestic level is 2 to 3 times what it is in other parts of the grid. So the consumers in Linden have an opportunity to lower the level of consumption and lower their cost…this is a reform in the electricity supply,” he said.
The blocking of the bridge has implications for person travelling to and from Lethem. Prime Minister Hinds lamented. “This inflicts untold harm on Linden and I feel very strongly about it, because this Government and particularly myself, have been advocating Linden as the place to be; to businesses and as the place that would be the gateway to and from Region Nine and Northern Brazil.”
He said people have been falling for leadership that has in effect, misled them and there are also a few who are willing to use force to keep Linden locked up.
“The problems for Linden rest on the heads of those leaders who are leading this shutting down of Linden and the closing of the bridge…I am encouraging everyone who has suffered losses to take the instigators to court; sue them for those losses,” he urged.
Meanwhile, Nadir said that the issue is having all of Guyana paying a fairly equitable rate for electricity and not one group of people enjoying a highly subsidised rate. He made reference to Mahdia and Port Kaituma, which are now in the electricity system and have a similar structure; whereby a certain amount of kilowatts are given at a very low rate, while they pay a higher rate for consumption above a certain limit.
This structure is particularly designed to ensure that vulnerable citizens are protected from undue financial burdens.
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