Dear Editor,
On the Guyanese-run blog, GUYANA FRIENDS, I came across a post on April 17 that showed an article written by Sharief Khan of the Guyana Chronicle, with the headline: “Corruption law to cover officers in revenue agencies.”
The date the article was published was December 14, 1999, and the occasion for the disclosure was a meeting in Florida at which President Bharrat Jagdeo was the main speaker.
With your kind permission, sir, I’d like to share an extract from what the Chronicle news article stated:
“He (Jagdeo) announced that he would be asking Chairman of the Integrity Commission, Anglican Bishop Randolph George, to work with the government to amend the legislation “so that all officers in the revenue agencies would have to also focus on providing their assets and income” to the body.
“Government ministers and other senior state officials are required by law to declare their assets and income to the commission and the President said all the ministers have complied with the legislation.
“His firm stand on rooting out corruption in official circles brought applause from the mainly Guyanese resident in Florida at the dinner at the Hilton hotel, near the Miami International airport.
“Among guests was former Guyanese and West Indian cricketer Lance Gibbs, who now lives in Florida.
“President Jagdeo reiterated that he intends to “get rid of this (corruption) problem…and everyone in my government would have to conduct their business transparently or they would not have a part in the government.”
“As he has done several times here since assuming the presidency in August this year, Mr. Jagdeo stressed at his speaking engagements in Miami last week that he was focusing on transparency in government.
“I intend to ensure that all people in public office (declare their assets)…because we have had a history of a lack of transparency and some corruption in government services…”, he declared.
My reason for sharing this article is to bring the attention of readers how long ago this President has promised to deal with the prevalence of corruption in the PPP regime by enacting legislation, and here we are almost nine years later, and he is now trying to break the tip of the iceberg at the GRA. What’s the people’s report card on this count?
But since the GRA cannot be the only government agency that is fraught with corrupt practices, then given this nine-year span of virtual inaction, when will he be finished with the endemic and systemic corruption throughout government?
Ironically, in a separate post on the same blog on April 17, was another news item dated July 20, 2003, this time sourced to Stabroek News and written by the late Patrick Denny, titled, “Lack of suitable guns still holding up SWAT team.”
I won’t reprint the entire item, but to show a pattern of the President making promises and not keeping them, the article noted that the lack of suitable guns excuse was used one year after the President promised to set up a SWAT team. Almost six years later, suitable guns or no suitable guns, there still is no SWAT team.
I can only hope Guyanese are paying attention to this President who either is playing politics or totally incompetent.
Yours faithfully,
Emile Mervin
