Majority Reject National ID, Demand Better Tax Management

Last week, while the buzz was building around the proposed shift from the Belize Tax Service to a new semi-autonomous revenue agency, SARA, we took the conversation online. We ran a quick social media poll, asking Belizeans two simple questions to get a feel for public opinion. Now, it wasn’t scientific, but the responses were telling. First, we asked, “Do you believe the government is collecting enough taxes at present, or do they need to collect more to be more efficient?” The responses were as follows: twenty-two percent, or one hundred and ninety-one participants agreed that they collect enough taxes already. Three percent, or thirty-four participants, agreed that they should collect more but spend it wisely. Seventy-five percent, six hundred and sixty votes indicated that they should first improve how they use current tax revenues. The second question we asked was, “With the proposed National ID, do you think having one ID that is mandatory and must be used to conduct any and all transactions is necessary, or do we have sufficient IDs as it is? Twelve percent, or one hundred and forty-six participants said yes, one National ID is necessary and helpful. Five percent, the equivalent of seventy-five participants said maybe, but only if it replaced other IDs. Overwhelmingly, one thousand, one hundred and one participants, or eighty-three percent, said no, we already have enough valid IDs.