HGP Nightly News – VPAC is calling for full public disclosure over the granting of special waivers for the importation of chicken and other poultry products, raising concerns that the process may have been handled in a way that lacks transparency, fairness and proper oversight.
In a statement, the party said Guyana already maintains effective restrictions on the importation of chicken and other poultry products, with only limited exceptions made through waivers issued at the discretion of the Minister through the Ministry of Agriculture.
According to VPAC, those exemptions are not processed through the Guyana Livestock Development Authority, the statutory body ordinarily responsible for oversight in the livestock sector, and that has triggered serious questions about how decisions are being made.
At the centre of VPAC’s concerns are allegations that some of the waivers may not have been granted on an impartial basis. The party said it has received information suggesting that the limited approvals issued may have favoured persons with family or close ties to senior government officials, raising the spectre of nepotism in the handling of import concessions.
VPAC also argued that the situation is even more troubling because the New Guyana Marketing Corporation already has an import licence that allows it to step into the market during shortages and help stabilise prices for consumers.
In that context, the party is questioning why the corporation was not used more prominently as the main mechanism for responding to any shortfall, rather than relying on discretionary waivers granted to private parties.
The party is now demanding that the Ministry of Agriculture explain the basis on which special poultry import waivers are being approved, what criteria are applied, and why the Guyana Livestock Development Authority is not being used as the main regulatory channel for these decisions.
VPAC is also asking how many waivers have been granted over the past year, who received them, and whether any of the beneficiaries had personal or familial connections to government officials or the minister responsible.
Beyond the issue of fairness, VPAC said the importation of poultry under what it described as opaque arrangements could also create wider risks.
It warned that bringing in container loads of poultry through discretionary waivers and quietly distributing them into the local market could undermine local producers and expose consumers to potential health risks if proper inspection and certification systems are not followed.
The party is further asking what safeguards are in place to prevent conflicts of interest and ensure that public office is not used for private benefit. It also wants answers on what biosecurity, health and market risks may arise from allowing imported poultry into the domestic market outside of the normal regulatory pathway.
VPAC is now calling on the Ministry to publish a full list of all waivers granted, including the names of beneficiaries, the quantities imported, the dates of approval and the justification for each decision. Its position is that only full disclosure will settle the growing questions surrounding how these poultry imports are being authorised and whether the process is being managed in the public interest.
