August 30, 2012:

KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC -In the wake of concerns about the rising cost of petrol, the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (Petrojam) is again being pressured to make public pricing mechanism. The latest appeal has come from the Micro, Small and Medium Sized Enterprise, (MSME) Alliance which says for many of its members, especially taxi drivers, the impact has been devastating and concerns are mounting in the face of persistent questions about the pricing mechanism used by Petrojam. President of the Jamaica Solar Energy Association and member of the MSME Alliance, Roger Chang says the information should be made available to dispel doubts that the public is being cheated. Mr. Chang told the RJR Communications Group that he is now waiting on the outcome of a request for the pricing formula through the Access to Information Act. This latest appeal follows several from Opposition Spokesman on Energy, Gregory Mair who has been strident in his criticisms of the pricing mechanism, labeling it as deeply flawed. However, despite calls for Petrojam to open up to public scrutiny it has steadfastly remained silent.

According to Chang, the MSME Alliance is also questioning whether the concerns raised in two audit reports of Petrojam in 2008 and 2009 have been addressed. He says among other things the audits said Petrojam’s pricing mechanism is being administered with limited oversight.   The audit pointed out that with Petrojam being one of the market participants it was improper for it to administer the pricing system. On Wednesday it was announced that motorists would have to pay more for petrol for a ninth straight week as Petrojam hiked prices to just below record levels.

By Observer Media Group