The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

FREE National Movement leader Michael Pintard accused the government of being “arrogant” and “hard-headed” in its approach to implementing expanded price controls.

He spoke to reporters the same day private pharmacies “temporarily” closed due to the failure to resolve the price control expansion dispute by the November 1 deadline.

“We are in this position where entrepreneurs who feel that their businesses are at risk of closing, Bahamians losing their jobs, have taken a dramatic step to draw attention to the failure of this government to do at least two things before it put in place the price control measures,” he said.

He said one decision the government ought to have made was to conduct an analysis to determine whether or not a solution that is being considered is going to have unintended bad consequences.

“In this case, they did not conduct the appropriate analysis. Secondly, the government failed to consult. So in the absence of a study, it is absolutely necessary for policymakers to have a conversation with the sectors that are going to be affected. They made technical errors. So where they thought they were maybe affecting 38 items it turns out that they could very well be affecting hundreds if not thousands of items.

“What is true according to wholesalers, according to retailers, whether they’re grocers or pharmacists, is that at least 60 percent to 70 percent of some of their businesses and their products are now affected by the decision of the government. And once again they asked ‘Can we sit down and have a conversation about how we can do this’ so that one, the consumers are protected in terms of having affordable items, whether it’s food or medication, baby products, etc.

“The government again has been hard-headed, arrogant in its approach that even when persons pointed out obvious technical errors in the classification of goods, as well as when they pointed out that the margins that the government is interested in imposing on Bahamian entrepreneurs who are assisting thousands of Bahamians, the government still did not relent and have a reasonable conversation with these entrepreneurs.”

He said it is “unfair” for the government to then ask a particular category of Bahamian entrepreneurs to solve a problem that officials have been elected in large measure to tackle.

So they are asking the private sector to solve an issue that is the inflationary pressures heaped on the backs of Bahamians. They want one particular group to address it. To the credit of a number of these groups that have been negatively affected, they have said we are prepared to do our share,” the Marco City MP said.

“The government, however, has refused to do its part. The Free National Movement has made several recommendations and we are happy to hear members of the media and others echoing a number of those measures.”

He suggests removing VAT off medications, baby products and breadbasket items.

“But at a minimum, the government can remove VAT on all of those items that are even being considered and they have failed to do so. The second thing we believe that the government has the ability to do to take pressure off Bahamians is they could reduce the extravagant travel that they are engaged in on a regular basis. They can cut the budget around the many consultancies that they have put in place,” Mr Pintard said.