Ever since the Chief Minister made the statement in the Anguilla House of Assembly, and reported in the local media, I have been anxiously waiting to hear that something had been done to reduce customs duties on the importation of certain basic items of food as he had promised. I am not aware that anything has been done about this matter and, certainly, I do not think that my brief sojourns abroad, since that statement was made, have caused me to miss this vital information which I have not seen or heard in the news. I stand to be corrected if I really missed any report that this promise was fulfilled.

I know that in Nevis, for example, and possibly in St. Kitts, some easement in customs duties on a string of food and other everyday household items was announced and, although Anguilla is thankfully separated from that union of islands, I was hoping we would follow suit.

Mr. Editor, as everybody knows, these are very hard times and while some of us are still fortunate to have the means to live and eat with some comfort, I am saddened when I realise that there are others among us who are suffering badly. Imagine the other day I saw an old man slowly making his way to the cashier counter at one of our supermarkets with little more than a handful of items. When he reached he dug deep into his pocket, took out a crushed one hundred dollar bill, watched it hard and then handed it over to the cashier to pay for his goods. He steered in apparent disbelief when his change, a few coins, was given to him. He glanced around and walked away silently but obviously in deep thought, holding on to the plastic bag with the goods far down in the bottom.

Aside from the relief of customs duties mentioned above, I am appalled that the price of food is so very high in Anguilla. When the cost of fuel was going up, food prices also went up understandably but now with fuel down at a very affordable price level, the cost of food has not been reduced to what it was before. Every shopper is feeling the pinch and nothing is being done about it. One supermarket owner when asked how his business was doing, shrugged his shoulders and said something like this: “Well, you know people have to eat and shop so it will be sometime before grocery stores can complain.” I ponder his comment and, like the man I described above, I walked off silently and in deep thought. I did not like the businessman’s answer for reasons I do not wish to state in this letter. I think it is a shame that our people are burdened with such alarming food prices and what is sad is that there is no recourse.

Name withheld at writer’s request

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