Owed GST lands businessman David Gegg in Court
David Gegg
Belize City businessman David Gegg, proprietor of Cruise Solutions and Discovery Expeditions, today evaded a committal warrant for failure to pay General Sales Tax. The GST Department wanted Gegg for non-payment of almost two hundred and six thousand, six hundred and thirty-nine dollars in taxes. In court this morning, GST Legal Officer, Jacqueline Meighan, explained to Magistrate Cathleen Lewis that an order was issued at the end of September 2011 for Gegg to settle arrears of two hundred and sixty-four thousand dollars in back taxes for the two businesses. Meighan further told the court that Gegg was given a reasonable payment plan during which he could have paid off the mounting debt. But up until this morning Gegg had only paid sixty-seven thousand dollars of the total owed. Meighan pressed the court to order that half of the new arrears, an additional one hundred and fifty-nine thousand, seven hundred dollars which has accrued since last year, be paid up front. Gegg, who wasn’t in court today, was represented by accountant Sheffield Eck. Eck told the court that on numerous occasions he advised Gegg to file for bankruptcy in an effort to clear his debts. According to Eck, the returns filed suggest that the company is profitable; however, the actual profits of the businesses are significantly less due to unforeseen expenses. Gegg, he said, was in the process of securing a loan which he would use to defray a portion of the GST bill by the end of the week. With that he sought an extension from the court until the end of this week. Magistrate Lewis subsequently ordered that eighty thousand dollars be paid by December twenty-first, and the balance paid in installments. This afternoon Eck made an initial payment of fifty thousand dollars, presumably as an act of good faith. Gegg is to appear in person before the court on Wednesday morning to answer to the committal warrant in order for a payment assessment to be conducted.
GST just CHANCY…GOB wants us to pay TAXES when we can Barely Break even…so not FAIR! i can’t wait for a new GOB…
You have to know when to hold them, and know when to fold them.
I wonder what “unforeseen expenses” make his big businesses unprofitable.
yeah, in this country it’s hard to survive, what will happen to the 500 or so Belizeans that this man employs. Thanks to the goverment for allowing this Jamaican company to have taken away most of this man’s income leaving him to scramble for the crumbs…
He collects GST from his clients for the Government. He is an agent of the GST department. The GST (no matter how fair or unfair the regime is) collected never belonged to him. It is a direct theft, in my opinion, from the people of Belize. As such, lock him up if he refuses to pay.
If you don’t like the law, pressure to change. We have to live by law, Mr. Gegg, read Hobbes and his “social contract” theory.
Maybe if this man pay then the GOB can pay some of the industries back that have been owed for almost 2 years the refund which they are due. Not fair to pay but can’t collect back according to law. There are many businesses that need their money back too so they can operate. My sense is it will get much worse before it gets better and never under this administration!
@Common Sense, you’re 100% right. If you steal enough from the government, they will give you a break, but if you owe just a little, watch out!
Where else can you misappropriate A QUARTER MILLIONS DOLLARS and not get locked up??? [Not counting government ministers and Gapi’s family, of course.]
@Common Sense: Per Hobbes, Voltaire, Rousseau, John Stuart Mill, Aristotle ,Socrates, and Plato ” What good are any laws if they don’t provide Justice?” GST is an unfair , oppressive tax regime. Look also at the criminal , abusive manner GOB squanders SSB’s people’s money. What say you to that Mr. Uncommon Sense?
Common sense you are absolutely correct, this is money paid by clients/customers, he has absolutely no right to pocket this money. GST should be paid consistently as he conducts businesss, This has nothing to do with whether or not he makes a profit. This individual should be locked down for not paying taxes.
McAfee got away and now Gegg is the new McAfee that the GOB will terrorise until he leaves Belize for greener pastures.
We work our @sses off in Belize for nothing only to be hassled by the GeSTapo.
Business is so bad we sometimes have to dip into the GST to pay wages and bills or go bankrupt.
PUP say no more taxes and see how you will win the next election. We can do like Monaco.
All Belizeans should live free and rich off oil profits and tourism dollars.