Shastri Boodan
Chambers of Commerce in Central are hoping that the Government will not raise the cost of fuel and add more taxes to burden the population.
Richie Sookhai, the president of the Chaguanas Chamber of Industry and Commerce and Mukesh Ramsingh, the president of the Couva-Point Lisas Chamber of Commerce spoke to Guardian Media.
Sookhai said the economy was "basically running on fumes" and "a bit stagnant".
He said, "Some of the contractors are yet to be paid, we are now feeling the fallout from the closure of Petrotrin where a lot of the business ecosystem that was built around Petrotrin have pivoted their business model elsewhere. Petrotrin was a huge service receiver from a lot of these downstream industries. With the closure of Petrotrin, we are now feeling the pinch where a lot of people are looking at how they spend their money."
Sookhai said the Government should rethink the removal of the fuel subsidy. "While we haven’t gone to the streets and riot yet, the economy is suffering. It is wise that the Government look at this, seeing the higher oil prices, they could look to hold their hand, at least for now, until things get a little better so that they can ultimately reach their goal of capping the fuel subsidy."
He said a lot of Small and Micro Enterprises (SMEs) failed to benefit from grants and loans offered in the last budget. "Some of these initiatives were implemented but at the same time there were issues among the SMEs having the ability to gain access due to not being regularised, and many of them opted not to go forward because the cost to become regularised would have outweighed the benefits of the grants itself. With that being said, a lot of the SMEs were not able to tap into this grant."
Mukesh Ramsingh, President of the Couva Point Lisas Chamber of Commerce.
SHASTRI BOODAN
Ramsingh, meanwhile, said with the state of the economy the Government should rethink its move to raise the prices of fuel and implement property tax.
"People are already cautious with their spending because they have less and less income. Hikes in fuel prices would create hardships across the board. People’s salaries have not increased and to hit the nation with a hike in fuel prices and property taxes would lead to a nation of very unhappy people who are struggling to make ends meet, put food on the table and send their children to school.
"I must ask, is it in the national interest to burden the population with additional debt that may lead to destitution and young people dropping out of school? The economy is barely afloat as it is. We need more than a year to recover from the outbreak of the pandemic."
Ramsingh said the CPLCC was looking forward to more diversity and initiatives offered to boost the tourism sector and new crime prevention methods.