I HAVE noticed with some amount of amusement that, in recent times, there has been an upsurge in the letters’ columns of the Stabroek News of very critical missives concerning the operations of the GRA, and more particularly the Licence Revenue Department (LRD). My suspicion has been aroused that this could very well be orchestrated, not only to harm the image of the organisation, but, as it would appear, to  target  the head of that department, who has been making significant strides in recent times in his bid to eliminate corrupt practices; and in the process may have been making the lives of those officers, acting in concert with certain members of the public engaged in those practices, very uncomfortable, and the continuation of their exploits highly threatened.
Let me, at the outset, say very categorically that I welcome criticism from any quarter, as in the case of the confrontational Mr. Persaud, for whom in Monday’s edition of the Stabroek newspaper was published a letter purportedly written by him under the caption “There may be a problem with the new licensing arrangements.”
I would not, however, waste any time commenting on the rubbish about comparing me with a certain admirable and distinguished personality of this country, nor to rebut the nonsense that was allowed to be published concerning my salary, which is indeed libelous, and for which I have requested my attorney to take note and to act accordingly. Rather, I would like to constructively spend my time to provide your readership with clarifications as to the problem that Mr. Persaud perceives would be encountered by the GRA as it proceeds to implement the new system for the sale of motor vehicle licences.
It is a fact that the GRA Public Relations Department has been very actively engaged in both the print and electronic media, explaining how the new system works. The fact, therefore, that the Stabroek newspaper would choose to publish such a letter, which raises issues which ought to be straightforward and comprehensible, would suggest that the campaign failed to achieve its stated objective, or made inappropriate and inaccurate assumptions concerning the target audience.
We most certainly will have to go back to the drawing board and rethink our strategy. It is for this very reason that we welcome the feedback from the public; as, hopefully, this approach would be useful in guiding us in making the necessary adjustments to the system where the need arises.
Let me make the point that, as is common with any new system that makes fundamental changes to the way the public is provided with a service, there are bound to be those who would stoically resist these changes; and it may sometimes be validly argued that among them are those who have their status quo to protect, and would rather not have such changes see the light of day, lest the schemes of deception that once thrived under the shroud of confusion and chaos be discovered.
I hope Mr Persaud does not fall into this nefarious category.
My PR campaign would surely have addressed the issue of the period that would most certainly arise for almost 99 % of vehicle owners whose licence cannot be renewed at the first day of the year, but during varying anniversary dates of the first registration of the vehicle. Mr. Persaud needs to reflect that the same perceived problem would have arisen when, some two decades ago, the sale of drivers’ licences underwent the same change to allow for the renewal of the licence of the driver on his or her birthday.
I am therefore flabbergasted that your letter writer would not have figured out for himself that there is absolutely nothing that can be done about this “gap” during the transition from the old to the new, which would invite some amount of confusion.
Let me assure your readership the Guyana Revenue Authority would have ensured that the relevant authorities charged with enforcement of the renewal of the motor vehicle licence are adequately briefed on the workings of the new system. In addition, various press releases would have been issued to advise the general public about the enforcement activities that would be pursued by the law enforcement agencies of the State.
While it is therefore acceptable to make criticisms, were your letter writer paying close attention to the many press releases issued on this new initiative, he would not have been having such concerns over being stopped by the police.
We deliberately stated in our discussion on the subject that the police would be provided with a listing of those motorists who have failed to respond to the notice issued by the LRD to have their motor vehicle licences renewed at the anniversary date of the first registration of their vehicle. This, we advised, would be the basis for the police engaging in the campaign to intercept, and if necessary charge, motorists for not responding favourably to the reminder sent to each and every vehicle owner.
It would be recalled that, prior to the introduction of the new system for the issuing of motor vehicle licences, the sale of such licences commenced after the passage of the Appropriation Bill in Parliament, and lasted for a limited period of three months. During that period, and indeed prior to the commencement of sale of motor vehicle licences (January to the period prior to the passage of the Appropriation Bill), no enforcement activities were carried out by the Guyana Police Force.
This very policy of granting a grace period for the period commencing from the beginning of the year until the sale of licence comes to an end, some six months later, will occur for this first year only, during the phasing-in period. It is common sense that this, by necessity, has to happen, but will be dispensed with in all subsequent years. As a matter of fact, the benefits that are likely to flow to the motorist will certainly be most welcome to the overwhelming amount of them who ply our roads throughout the length and breadth of this country.
With the implementation of the current system for the issuing of motor vehicle licences, motor vehicle owners like Mr. Persaud will be reminded, by way of notice, of the renewal date of their motor vehicle licences. This has never occurred in the history of this country, paving the way for significant improvements to be experienced in monitoring the sale of the licence, as well as ensuing enforcement activities are conducted by our Guyana Police Force in the most professional and efficient manner.
This first year of implementation would therefore be a special year, not only for those accustomed to having to wait long hours to be served and becoming frustrated with having to walk with many documents, but also for the purpose of enforcement, since the Guyana Revenue Authority will provide the Guyana Police Force with updated information on all unlicensed motor vehicles on a monthly basis, for appropriate action to be taken.
I trust that this explanation amply explains to not only Mr. Persaud, but your wider readership, as well as perhaps members of our law enforcement agency, what to expect in the days and months to come; while we, as motorists, begin to reap the benefit of the long, arduous and dedicated effort of the GRA’s  hard-working Information Technology staff, who can now finally breathe a welcome sigh of relief that the days of confusion and chaos that once prevailed and became the order of the day, and that would have been the hotbed for many unscrupulous activities, would have become something of the past.
I know for a fact that there are some very bitter and disgruntled persons who would have made significant illegal gains from their exploits.
In closing, I welcome any suggestions, but would prefer the discourse to be at a civilized level, considering the many challenges that the LRD is likely to face in the days and months to come; and, where possible, to also be provided with workable solutions to these problems.