Govt criticised for late property tax payment action

Senior Reporter

rhondor.dowlat@guardian.co.tt

Political analyst Dr Shane Mohammed has criticised the Government’s handling of the property tax payment process, labelling yesterday’s deadline extension announcement as an unavoidable outcome of poor planning and mismanagement.

According to Dr Mohammed, the extension was inevitable after citizens faced long lines and were forced to pay in cash without sufficient alternative payment methods.

“The extension was the only logical step after the public was left scrambling in chaotic conditions. The Government failed to provide enough payment options,” he said yesterday.

Ministry of Finance Colm Imbert yesterday confirmed that the property tax deadline, originally set for the end of September, would be extended, with a new deadline to be announced on Monday in Parliament yesterday. This announcement followed widespread confusion at the Board of Inland Revenue (BIR) and district revenue offices, where citizens endured hours in queues.

Since September 16, Linx services were suspended to allow the closure of BIR accounts for the financial year, leaving many with no alternative but to pay in cash.

Mohammed argued that while citizens were generally compliant with the tax, the Government’s failure to offer adequate payment alternatives—such as online platforms, card machines, or even a bank account with First Citizens —was inexcusable.

“The minister’s claim that these options are difficult to set up is just an excuse. When the Government is committed to a policy or project, they make it happen. This should have been one of those times,” he noted.

Public safety concerns also surfaced, with police reports indicating that criminals were targeting individuals withdrawing large sums of money from banks to pay the tax.

Mohammed believes this could have been avoided if secure, modern payment methods had been introduced earlier.

“The Ministry of Finance had a responsibility to ensure citizens received proper guidance and forms in advance. The fact that the situation escalated this far is a failure of leadership,” he added, calling the extension a tacit admission of the Government’s shortcomings.

In response, Finance Minister Colm Imbert assured the public that by October, payments will be facilitated through bank transfers and Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions.

However, Mohammed remained unimpressed with these late solutions.

“These options should have been available from the start. The chaos we’ve witnessed over the past few days could easily have been avoided,” he remarked.

As the nation approaches an election year, Mohammed said he anticipates the Finance Minister will offer explanations for the extension but doubts they will hold any real weight.

“I expect some convenient excuse for the delay, but this is just another sign of inefficiency,” he concluded.

Opposition MP Dave Tancoo echoed Mohammed’s sentiments. Reiterating what he said at a media conference on Sunday, Tancoo noted that citizens had to wait for hours in the sun and rain to meet the original deadline, even as some of them have not yet received assessment notices.

“I warned that the minister enjoys seeing people suffer, and today’s announcement of an extension, without any details, confirms it,” Tancoo said, emphasising that the Government’s lack of clarity only reinforced his earlier criticisms.

With the tax deadline now extended, citizens are hopeful of smoother processes moving forward, though many are left questioning the Government’s overall preparedness for key financial operations.

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