Minister Says Ministry of Agriculture Looking at Price Gouging

As we head into the Christmas season, one of the concerns that shoppers have raised is the issue of price gouging. This is a problem that is separate from the increase in shipping prices that have caused cost of living to shoot sky high. But, Minister Abelardo Mai, who holds the portfolio for Food Security, told the media today that his Ministry is taking action.

Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture, Food Security

“We went out, we had to go out to the stores and we saw that indeed there was gouging, but you have to understand something, there are what you call price control goods and price regulative goods. Price control puts a price on the product, rice for example, sugar for example. Those are price control goods. Then there is Price regulative goods where the government puts a percentage on your mark ups. Percentage on wholesale and a percentage on retail. Minister Coye is working on a paper right now, along with us, Ministry of Agriculture. Both of us want to submit cabinet paper on the same matter so we said we will hold it off, let us synergize and come up with one good position. But we had been advocating that we need to change the law to say that if you are caught gouging you will not be taken to court. You will be given a ticket system, because if you take somebody to court, it will take you two years, and by then deh done gouge half ah Belize. So we were looking to change the law to pay a ticket. So you will pay a ticket and close your store. When you return , you show me your receipt then yoh open your store.”

Minister Mai says that merchants who do not put the prices of their goods will also be targeted. He said they are looking into the likelihood also of merchants offering bribes to turn their heads the other way.