THE Private Sector Commission (PSC) is requesting that Finance Minister Winston Jordan provide “empirical evidence” regarding his statements made on the impact of the proceeds of drugs on the economy.

In a letter addressed to the minister on October 12, 2018 and shared with the media, acting chairman of the PSC, Deodat Indar stated that the commission has taken note of his recent statements and now seeks further clarity on the matter.

“The Private Sector Commission has noted several public pronouncements by you regarding the impact of proceeds of drug trafficking on the economy pre and post May 2015.”
“We shall be grateful to be briefed by you on the assertions made that the economy pre May 2015 was heavily based on proceeds of the drug trade and that the current economy post May 2015 is no longer affected by such proceeds,” the letter stated.

Indar’s correspondence went on to add: “As businesses it is important for us to understand the underlying structure of the economy and the various elements that contribute or inhibit its growth.”

The comments referenced by Indar were made recently through a letter to the editor by Jordan in response a Stabroek News editorial piece criticising the current government’s administrative capacity.

In this regard, the article had referred to the present administration as the “least competent one this country has yet experienced” while deeming that Jordan’s success rate would not improve under current circumstances.
In response, Minister Jordan said among other things that the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) left behind a “deformed and broken economy,” one which the present administration must now work to fix.

“Lest we forget, too, that economy thrived on rampant drug trafficking, money laundering, and a banking sector in which a few institutions recklessly lent funds for private white elephant projects,” Jordan said.

He stated further that the PPP’s “lending binge” and “reckless investments” resulted in an average non-performing loan ratio contributing, significantly, to the immediate slowing of the economy post-2015.

He later reminded that the country’s economy grew by 4.5 per cent in the first half of 2018 and is projected to grow by 3.7 per cent for all of 2018.
Jordan placed further comparisons stating that in 2013 only 992 out of 2,618 registered and active firms filed tax returns and out of 75,992 active self-employed persons only 33,740 filed their taxes.

Meanwhile, the World Bank in June 2018 had stated that “Guyana is making important strides to promote financial resilience and improve fiscal management” which Jordan says are signs of the country increasingly being viewed as stable.

Apart from this, he outlined that the present government has kept inflation well in check; reduced Value Added Tax (VAT) and increased the minimum basic salary of each public servant along with other measures to ensure a healthy economy. Even so, the PCS has requested a response on the matter from the Finance Minister, as its letter stated: “We look forward to such a brief so that we could better understand the empirical evidence supporting your assertions.”