THE EDITOR, SIR:
LESS THAN two weeks after Dr. Omar Davies, the Finance Minister, told this nation that there will be no new taxes the same Government has announced a new tax in order to pay for street lights (which our PAYE, GCT, property taxes, and other taxes which we already pay should already take care of).
This is particularly irritating coming on the heels of the recently revealed mismanagement/give-away of our tax dollars by this same Government through NetServ (over $200 million) and NHDC/Operation Pride (over $5 billion) scandals.
We can resist paying this new street light tax/cess without blocking the roads and burning tyres. If we were all to pay our light bills less the new tax portion JPSCo could not disconnect our lights for that as we would have already paid for our electricity consumption. We would only owe Government, which would now have to come back and talk to us and talk to us in a proper way. They cannot disconnect all our electricity at the same time!
Think about it, my fellow Jamaicans.
I am, etc.,
PETER TOWNSEND
Deputy General Secretary
National Democratic Movement
Richmond Park Ave
Kingston 10
