Open to reasonable taxation
A body representing internet café owners says that it will comply with any reasonable taxation imposed on their businesses and warns that the blocking of internet calls will severely affect over 7000 persons.
The Internet Interest Holders Group, a body of internet café owners and managers which was formed following the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) announcement that it will pursue and prosecute such business that offer international telephone calls over the internet since it was “illegal”, is appealing to the government to help resolve the issue.
In a press release, issued under the name of Netsurf Manager, Stephen Thomas, the Group said that last week’s blocking of Voice Over Internet Protocols (VOIP) on Dialup and Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) by telephone company, Guyana Telephone and Telegraph (GTT) will force many businesses to close their doors and send home staff since they cannot afford to retain their services.
It said that this move targets some 600 internet cafes, which accounts for about 7200 persons. “The more alarming issue is that this move comes around a time when the United States of America is in the middle of one of the worst depressions in its history”, the statement said adding that since the unemployed persons cannot afford to pay their utility bills they may possibly be forced to become desperate and begin illegal activities.
The statement assured the GRA that it will comply with any reasonable taxation that will be determined by legislation and appealed to the government to make the necessary adjustments to resolve the issue “so as to ensure stability in this sector”.
The group said that the effects of the move will also indirectly affect the national foreign exchange take since “the poor people who use the internet are persons who are trying to cut back on expenses and would be forced to minimize the time spent on long distance calls to their friends, family and business colleagues internationally”.
It asserted that on previous instances, the government ruled in favour of services like Mediaring and Dialpad signaling their interest in innovation in the telecommunications sector.
The statement declared that the restrictions and limitations on the use of these services is a blatant attack on the rights of citizens to the use of the internet. It asserted that the telephone company’s blocking of VOIP’s and VPN’s implies aggressively that the company’s services must be used to make international calls which happens to be more expensive and said that the service and rates of the GT&T can be much better. GT&T could not be reached yesterday for a comment.
For quite some time the internet in Guyana was known as an avenue that allowed persons to communicate and share information internationally with greater advancements as technology and education developed, the group said. Businessmen have observed that there is potential in the internet in developing a new revenue base, the Group observed. It appealed to the public to support the lobby for lifting sanctions against the internet.
The GRA, in a statement late last month had said that a large number of persons and entities have become illegally involved in the international telephone call business and the entity is moving to prosecute them. “These individuals and businesses have essentially created illegal telecommunications networks that employ authorized VSAT equipment for unlawful purposes or VSAT equipment without the requisite licenses, SIM banks, broadband, Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and international Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) providers like Vonage, Skype, and Packet 8 to offer outbound and inbound voice calls to the public for a fee. These operations are illegitimate and essentially result in tax evasion since no revenue is paid on these calls,” the GRA had declared.
It had said that such operations are increasing rapidly and its calculations indicate that their collective impact on the national revenue collection effort is too significant to ignore. Government has supported the revenue body and urged the entity to aggressively pursue the tax evaders and enforce the law.
The internet group urged public support via emails to icoauguyana@yahoo.com or by phoning 698-6153.
I greatly appreciate the interest showed as like minded individuals weigh in on the burden placed on them by the GRA. Please continue to join us the Internet Interest Holders as we stand as one voice in support of the poor people who represents a large percentage of our population.
Sometimes I sit and wonder what going through the minds of the people who live and run Guyana.
My plans of returning to Guyana to live are being shelved, after living in the USA I cannot return to the jungle with a Wild west mentality. Other Caribean countries are getting ahead of us by leaps and we are moving backwards. I agree every business should be taxed but stopping free communication is just going to stifle everybody in and out of Guyana.
I am waiting on the revolution in Guyana….waiting impatiently..
THAT IS SO TRUE. SEEMS LIKE GUYANA MOVING ANTI–FORWARD. THE US HAS VONAGE, WHERE IS TEH SAME INTERNET,BEING USED TO AMKE CALLS AT A CHEAPER RATE, THE CARIBBEAN USING VONAGE TOO, YAHOO VOICE, CIBE, INDIGO, ALL THESE ARE CHEAP CALLS INTERNET PROVIDERS, WHY THE HELL IS TEH AUTHORITES MAKING IT HARDER FOR GUYANESE, WE OVERSEAS JUST FEEL GREAT TO HEAR OUR FRIENDS AND RELATIVES CALL AND CHAT WITH US, EVEN THOUGH MOST OF TEH TIME THEY CALLING TO BEG, BUT FINE, NOW THEY MIGHT NOT EVEN BE ABLE TO CALL AND ASK, HOW WE DOING, THEY WILL JUST GET TO THE POINT,” SEND ME SOME MONEY NUH, I BROKE”, GUYANA GETTING HARDER, IS TILL HOME, IT IS STILL A NICE PLACE BUT IT GETTING HARDER, THEN WE ASKING WHY TEH CRIME RATE SO HIGH, WHY ASK AND WE KNOW THE ANSWER. THEN AGAIN PERSONS WHO CAN RUN , RUNNING, TEACHER NURSES DOCTORS, RUN RUN, THEY ALL GONE, SOME DONT EVEN LOOK BACK, SOME DONT EVEN FEEL PLEASED TO GO BACK A YARD, THEY FRIGHTEN THE ROUGH LIFE,
GUYANA IS TOO MUCH OF RICH COUNTRY TO BE LIVING BELOW STANDARDS, AT TIMES I FEEL SO ASHAMED TO TELL PEOPLE THE EXCHAGE IS 200 TO 1.
THE GOVERMENT NEEDS TO STOP LIVING FOR THEIR POCKETS AND NOW FOR THE PEOPLE OF GUYANA. WE NEED BETTER STANDARD THERE,
WE HAVE GOLD, DIAMOND, TIMBER, RICE, SUGAR, WATERS, FORESTS, ALL TEH TOURIST ATTRACTIONS, WE HAVE OUR BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE, HOTELS, OUR WONDERFUL CAPITAL CITY, THERE IS NO NEED FOR GUYANA TO BE THE WAY IT IS, I WISH GUYANA HEAD OF STATE A BRIGHT NEW YEAR,
I WISH THAT COME NEXT YEAR, WHEN I HEAR ALL TEH GOOD THINGS HAPPENING IN GUYANA, I MUST FEEL THE URGE AND DESIRE TO COME HOME AND RELAX AND ENJOY THE LOVELY LAND, GREEN FRESH AIR, UNPOLUTED,,, THAT IS,..
GUYANA NEEDS TO DO BETTER
THANKYOU
Lol, yes Tess you & me both waiting… to visit Guyana, ha!
The Internet is here to stay and there is nothing the Govt. or GTandT can do to stop people from making calls through the Internet.
There is always a technology to bypass a blockage. The Govt. should ask the Internet Cafes to take out an annual licence and pay their income taxes, NIS etc.
Closing these cafes is not an option.
Only small entrepreneurs with limited capital are owners of internet cafes.
Why don’t the Govt. go after the strip clubs, the Brazilan prostitutes that charge G$15,000 to $25,000 for a shortime?
Lots of taxes the Govt. is losing here.
LEAVE THE INTERNET CAFE PEOPLE ALONE OR WE WILL HAVE MORE CRIME.
Re: i agree with most of what you say here in regards to the Govt. asking the Internet Cafes to take out an annual licence and pay their income taxes, NIS etc.
a brazilian hooker worth that much? lol.
they must be really looking good for that price.
oh oh, boy you seems to know a lot about how much the brazilian hookers charge balwant.
Balwant is stretching it.
Once more Balwant i agree with you
I am optimistic Government (esp the President who seems very keen on new technology and the prospect of cost of living relief for the masses) will see that VOIP provides a cheap means of communication that has permanently changed the playing field. It is now an inexpensive product will result in a lower tax collected. However, if it is encouraged and regularized then they can make up this loss by widening the base to include the VIOP retailers or wholesalers through a reasonable license fee. This would have the added benefit of increased revenue and still allowing the cost savings of this technology provides to be passed to the wide cross section of people using it. As an added bonus it would be sweet revenge on GT&T for holding on to an old business model that increases their bottom line but keeps us from taking advantage the benefits that technology can offer the Guyanese people. As I said before, The Post Office could not stop emails which have provide so much relief to the masses so why should GT&T be allowed to stop VOIP services.
RE: I second this. agree 100%
I would also like to say that travel a lot and my VOIP phone and phone number allows my clients in the US to reach me wherever I am around the world. I would be a great inconvenience to me and costly to my business if I could not access this service here in Guyana. It allows me to have my office anywhere in the world and still provide local access for my clients.
Being employed within the very sector in question I see a sense of urgency for the Government to react in a positive and steadfast manner; not only for my sake but also for the sake of the other seven thousand one hundred and ninety nine persons depending on this Jobs provided by the sector and the minor who depends on them also.
While it is agreed that the government and country would depend on revenues collected on both local and international calling, it is still an economic nightmare for them to flood the unemployment bank with a deposit that size. Instead of “blocking the Calls” why not collect taxations on them instead – the government will recover revenue claimed lost. Any one should know that competitive business sector are the ones that grows. GT&T’s Monopolistic grip on the telecommunication sector would prevent any growth to be revealed.
The Mobile Market saw a great reduction in cost of credit, availability of service in places starved of the service in their quest for new markets and clients, and bottom line is that the people of Guyana and the Guyanese economy benefits as a result.
I ask a single questions to the powers the be, “is the simple amendment of the VAT laws to accommodate the ITES facilities providing Internet Calls to change and remit the collect taxes to GRA thus recovering lost revenue due to “Illegal” activities or is that such an administrative nightmare?”
The Governments of Trinidad and Tobago, Belize Antigua and Barbuda have leant their lessons in this fight, I suggest consultations. India is currently having its share on the woes.
Bottom Line, Just create legislations to regulate the use of VOIP and collect revenues from the calls rather than closing the doors to so many business and homes.
now guyanese are known for their ingenuity and cunningness i am sure that people will find a way around this whole gt&t overseas calls fiasco.
THE AUTHORITES ARE LOOKING AT THE MINOR THINGS TOO MUCH RATHER THAN TP BE LOOKING AT THE REAL ISSUES TAHT ARE REALLY REALLY AFFECTING THE GUYANESE PEOPLE, THE ISSUES THAT ARE MAKING PEOPLE WHO CAN RUN, TO RUN FROM HOME WITH NO INTENTIONS OF EVEN WANTING TO VISIT,
I hope this group “The Internet Interest Holders Group, a body of internet café owners and managers…” do make some
progress. However I have some serious doubts for the
attitude of the government as demonstrated all the time is
that “you do as we tell you, not as you think it should be”.
For sure dictatorial attitudes prevail.
Cheddie in his days had opposed the internet starting in
Guyana. It finally did after all sorts of meetings with
Canada and the USA, and various assurances given and
received. Now the off-spring of easy and ready communication
is not pleasing to the government, as well as its
reasonableness.
Like I aleays say
” We in power and we will do what we want to do”.
So true and clear ALL DE TIME.
Nore misery for the poor and the needy.
Hey “decanadianCarlVeecock”! Good to see ya… Anyway, you have said among other things; Re: […Cheddie in his days had opposed the internet starting in Guyana. It finally did after all sorts of meetings with Canada and the USA, and various assurances given and received. Now the off-spring of easy and ready communication is not pleasing to the government, as well as its
reasonableness.
Like I always say
” We in power and we will do what we want to do”.
However, what the elected dictatorship in Guyana has to understand is that control of the “INTERNET” (and what people do on the “INTERNET” is completely out of their jurisdiction. The “INTERNET” is “FREE” – AS IN FREE BEER!
The next thing the elected ( :-$ ) dictatorship in Guyana may be tempted to do is to levy on the U. S. Immigration Applications done at the Internet Cafes’ ;-)
Cheers.
Have a nice day.
ANYONE DOING ANY FORM OF BUSINESS SHOULD PAY THE REQUIRED TAXES BUT THEY MUST BE PROPPERLY IMPLIMENTED AND IN STAGES,THE GRA SHOULD GIVE THE PEOPLE AT LEAST 6 MONTHS GRACE PERIOD. MR SATTAUR FIND SOMETHING CONSTRUCTIVE TO DO.