AGRICULTURE

The chickens have come home to roost for President Michel

LAST week was, for President James Michel, the moment when the chickens literally came home to roost, as the saying goes. He was seen and heard thinking aloud in front of the television camera of the state-controlled broadcasting media just why, if any farmer wanted to increase his stock of chickens, he or she should not be able to do so.

The event was one more photo opportunity for Michel trying to give the impression that he is concerned and personally doing something about their plight.

The spectacle, however, showed up the President of the Republic either as a consummate hypocrite or that he has definitely lost the plot.  The facts indicate he is both. This was no rhetorical question the President posed. For the answer is that Mr Michel and the SPPF do not allow any one by law, the right to breed more than a fixed number of chickens, despite the fact that this is a clear violation of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms enshrined in the Constitution.

But it was worse.  Since 1985 and until ten years ago, everyone needed a license to rear chickens on a commercial basis. Although this license was issued by the Licensing Authority, the permission came from Seychelles Marketing Board (SMB) which had a monopoly to supply adult and day old chickens to the market. SMB owned and still owns the only chicken abattoir in the whole of the Seychelles.  Only SMB can provide day old chicks to the market, even though the entity itself is defunct.

In 2005 a new law was promulgated. This law stated that SMB would determine how many chickens could be made available for sale in the market in Seychelles, and that SMB would allow only 70% of that “demand” to be met by local producers. SMB was given a monopoly to import 30% of the “demand”, as well as the right to determine what the demand was.

When challenged by DP's Paul Chow in the National Assembly about the wisdom of such a restriction on the freedom to do business (never mind its constitutionality), the government claimed that this was necessary in order to preserve food security. All along, of course, everyone knew it was an opportunity to cheat the people of Seychelles to fill the pockets of some individuals.

That is why we say today, when we hear President Michel ruminating in public about that stupidity, he is either waxing hypocritical or he has lost his marbles.

With SMB defunct, what is the state of affairs? What is President Michel planning to do? The answer is not as simple as he probably thinks. Michel is caught between a rock and a hard place.

First, should the consumers be forced to buy locally produced chickens at prices 30% to 50% greater than imported ones, even if the money to import them is sourced in the parallel market at a premium?

The government has an overriding responsibility to protect consumers. NATCOF the government's favourite GONGO (Government Owned Non-Government Organisation) financed to the tune of R900, 000 from public funds, is keeping vigilant eye on the matter. At least we hope.

Secondly, the government has a responsibility to support local producers because it is in the interest of long term food security to do so, but not at the expense of the welfare of the consumers.

Everyone is or should be free to import frozen chickens for sale, at least according to the Constitution and local producers should compete with imports. Restricting import by quota would violate the citizen's fundamental rights protected by the Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms as well as make it impossible for Seychelles to qualify to join the World Trade Organisation, which the Government has said it is committed to do.

Under the one-party state it was much easier. There were no human rights to contend with. Everyone did what the government said you should do or go prison or have your business closed down. Under the SMB Act, Mukesh Valabhji had the right to break into your premises confiscate your records and stocks and make you a criminal. Many of course, voted with their feet and left Seychelles.

May 30, 2008
Copyright 2007: Seychelles Weekly, Victoria, Mahe, Seychelles