Dear Editor,

THIS letter serves to bring a matter of gross exploitation of Guyanese to the attention of the relevant authorities with the hope of an urgent intervention. At present, persons who traverse the Puruni- Olive Creek Road are being charged exorbitant fees by a foreign company to cross the Puruni River via its river pontoon.
Form time immemorial, an initial toll has been paid at the Teperu Mazaruni crossing and the subsequent Puruni Crossing did not attract any charge. In recent months, however, we have seen spontaneous and drastically varying imposition of tolls at Puruni.
The crossing at Teperu to Itiballi extends approximately 1000m across the Mazaruni river and tolls are charged as follows: ATV- $2000, Excavator $45,000 and 4×4 TM Trucks $35,000. The crossing at Puruni, with high water, is approximately 120 m and low water 30 m; however, the foreign company’s charges are: ATVs $3000 to $5000, Excavator $100,000 to $300,000 and 4×4 TM Trucks $50,000. With no alternative, persons are forced to pay, without being issued a receipt, whatever is charged by the foreign company, on the day. This situation has been ongoing for several months and it is my hope that something would be done to address this outright abuse.

Your sincerely,

Concerned miner