—Jagdeo
The national consultations on the Caribbean’s Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) with Europe will be held on September 6 and 7, President Jagdeo said yesterday.
Jagdeo had publicly stated that Guyana would not be signing on to the EPA until national consultations on the issue were completed.
If the president had his way, only the ‘goods only’ section of the EPA with Europe would be agreed to while the other sections would be done away with; however, he said, if a refusal to sign meant that tariffs would be applied against the country’s exports, he would sign.
The president made the comments at a seminar on the EPA, which was organized by various trade union groupings and held at the Cheddi Jagan Research Centre yesterday. The EPA, a trade agreement between the European Union (EU) and CARIFORUM (Caribbean Community [Caricom] nations plus the Dominican Republic) is due to be signed on September 2 in Barbados.
Earlier this week the St Lucian government stated too that it would delay signing the agreement. Prominent regional academics have also raised concerns about the EPA and its implications for the region.
Jagdeo, the featured speaker at the seminar, yesterday declared that there were troubling times ahead noting that were the agreement in its present form to signed, in future negotiations with Canada and the US, they would demand similar concessions since a precedent had already been set and this would be “catastrophic” for the region.
The president noted the EPA should be a development agreement in nature but it was not and were it not for the threat of tariffs being applied to the country’s exports, Guyana would never sign the agreement. He said that the agreement was flawed and had very few development features. The head-of-state pointed out that while 75% of services would be liberalized, there was very little that the region could send into Europe and what the agreement had taken away from regional governments was the ability to protect domestic investors.
He further declared that the EPA would undermine the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) and would even supersede it. “I don’t think we can do both at the same time,” he said, noting that if there was a conflict the EPA would take precedence over the CSME.
The president added though that there were some good features to the agreement there should be a full airing of issues with the European Commission and the Regional Negotiating Machinery should be invited to take part.
He had earlier accused the European Commission of double standards and stated that the negotiations had not been done as equal partners and “essentially, they got their way.” Pointing to the EU’s cut in sugar prices, he said that Guyana would lose over US$40M per year.
Asked about the sugar industry and whether the La Bonne Intention (LBI) factory might be closed, Jagdeo said that the issue encompassed the survival of the sugar industry and if there were losses, there would be consequences.
He noted that production costs had risen and the government was not taking money from the treasury to subsidize loss-making entities as this had not worked in the past. “This is the reality,” he said pointing out that Guyana used about 40% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to import fuel.
“You can’t rack up big losses and then something doesn’t happen,” he stated emphasizing that no decision had been taken as yet to close any factory.
The guys whom the peolpe of the caribbean have elected to administer their affairs are incredilous. The prime minister in St. Lucia has now seen adverse consequences. These leaders should remember that there are no free lunches anymore. That past processes which have been put in place by some diplomats and international technical professionals were really cures for the symptoms and not the problem. People are now getting to the root of problems: how do they survive in a very cut throat competitive and increasingly inter-dependant world.
What we see now are some of the same guys who are the genesis of our current problems, most former diplomats and academics, who have help created the current situation are still giving advice and our leaders are listening to men who are of the past.
These are different times, cold war tatics and politics are over. mega blocks and interests of the survival of these blocks against cut throat competition from Brazil, India, China, Russia – all emerging economic powers – for their world dominance. The Ramphals, Bournes, Thomases, Sanders, Brewsters, etc are all part of the caribbean delima. Part of the problem and not the solution. What next, what are their concrete suggestions to replace the current EPA.
Not that they have not made a contribution in the past and that they are respected but their views are not current and adequate to meet the changing times and the development of strategies to pull the caribbean out of its misery.
Surely, they need to concentrate their effort to the way governance is practiced in the caribbean; are we about politics or economics. We have all but relegate economic development to the backburner and are focusing on solidifying our political parties and ourselves in leadership positions for eternity.
Let see them come up with an authentic caribbean plan to move us out of our misery and where we can say to our partners this is our plan, you have to help us. We are saying, hey guys, you owe us and you are going to pay up while we pussy foot with trivia. I have seen the most ridiculous exposition supposedly written by Havelock Brewster who was apparently senjoying the cocktail circuit while the EU was developing the EPA draft which incidentally was sign on to by the guys who are now crying foul. What advise did these doubting Thomases give, were they involved or as per usual Caricom thought that they had all the brains needed.
I think we are fooling our selves. jagdeo saying he will only sign because our exports will be taxed. Christopher Colombus I dear say. A lot of hot air noises to catch some limelight and detract from the budding dictatorship he is building in Guyana.