Latest update April 19th, 2024 12:10 AM
Sep 18, 2014 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom
There is no master/servant relationship between the Guyana Revenue Authority and the taxpayers of Guyana. Each has responsibilities towards the other.
In the case of the Guyana Revenue Authority, there is an obligation to maintain the confidentiality of taxpayers’ information. This is a binding obligation under the law since for third parties to have access to the information of taxpayers held by the GRA, the third parties have to approach the Courts.
Failure by the GRA to honour this obligation is a breach of confidentiality. Thus, whoever within the GRA releases taxpayer’s information to third parties without the authorization of either the taxpayer or the Courts, is in breach of a legally binding obligation and becomes civilly liable for a breach of the privacy of the taxpayer.
Over the past few weeks, the Guyana Revenue Authority has been releasing “privileged” information on taxpayers, as part of an attempt to attack Glenn Lall. These releases have been made within the pages of the Guyana Chronicle. The information released was not authorized by the taxpayers concerned.
It is perfectly within the right of the individuals concerned, including Glenn Lall, to institute legal action against the person or persons within the GRA who were responsible for the release of this information and to demand exemplary damages including possible custodial sentences for these deliberate releases of privileged information on the taxpayers. It is understood that this course of action is being actively contemplated.
What is disturbing is that a State agency is involved in this unethical practice of publicly releasing taxpayers’ information in breach of client/taxpayer relationship. This should not be happening. It represents an abuse of public office and those concerned should face public sanctions.
It is extremely disturbing that President Donald Ramotar would allow this abuse of public office to take place under his watch. The Guyana Revenue Authority is not expected to act in the way it has acted. The President should have not allowed this to continue and should have insisted that the GRA act in a professional manner.
When the National Assembly comes out of its summer recess this matter should be addressed. The Public Accounts Committee of the National Assembly and the Economic Services Committee of the same body, should summon the top brass of the GRA to special hearings on the release of the details of the taxpayers’ transactions which were laid bare in the media and which were attributed to named persons within the Guyana Revenue Authority. There has been a grave miscarriage of the GRA’s obligations and those responsible should explain their actions to the relevant parliamentary oversight bodies.
If it is determined that the GRA has been in breach of its obligation to treat with confidentiality information that is in its possession, then this would amount to a gross dereliction of duties by the officers concerned and they should either be fired or asked to resign. Public pressure should certainly be brought to bear on the individuals, since today it is the remigrants and tomorrow it can be you.
This very argument about abuse of public office was also evident in the situation of City Hall. It is wrong for some Councilors to be using the property of City Hall for partisan purposes even if it is a prayer service to protest the non-holding of local government elections.
Based on what was said during the protests on Tuesday, it is clear that the action to hold the prayer service was all part of the protests that had been promised by the main opposition party to rally support for the holding of local government elections. This was therefore a partisan protest and public property such as the City Hall should not be used or such partisan purposes. It is improper and it is wrong for this to happen.
If certain councilors of City Hall want to have a political protest in support of APNU’s call for local government elections, they should take it outside of City Hall. To attempt to use public property to launch a protest represents an abuse of public property.
This is no different from the abuse of a public tax office by the release of privileged information without due authorization.
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