Guyana on Thursday ruled out the restriction or banning of Chinese businesses, in the wake of concerns that the increasing number of mainly supermarkets is outcompeting their nearby locally-owned counterparts with cheaper prices.
“If the idea is to stop people based on nationality, it would be impossible to do it. What if China says ‘we’re not going to sell Guyana any of our goods anymore so you can’t import anything from China because you don’t want our people. You stopped us based on our nationality to sell in Guyana”, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo told a news conference.
He said the closure of Chinese businesses would not only amount to discrimination but could damage trade relations with China in violation of World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules. “It would not only be against WTO but it would run you into a very difficult foreign policy situation,” he said.
In the wake of concerns that the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and other regulatory laws were not enforcing the law regulatory, he said government had asked them to do so. Mr Jagdeo said there were concerns that people were being “induced” not to enforce the law. “You can ensure compliance with the laws of the country so they have to pay their fair taxes, they have to look at all of the regulations,” he said.
The Vice President also said there must be fair competition between Guyanese and Chinese businesses. “If our people are not allowed to sell multiple things in a single store, then they must not too; they must have separate stores for this,” he said.
Many Chinese supermarkets also sell phones, electrical and electronic items, cell phone accessories, construction tools and other items that are not sold in locally owned similar businesses.
The Vice President also said Guyanese-owned businesses do not open as many hours per day in contrast to the Chinese stores that open from early morning until night.
Putting himself in the position of Guyanese businesses who are facing competitive disadvantage and discriminatory application of rules such as the granting of permits, Mr Jagdeo said he would have also been upset.
