The Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) is going to be revamped to reflect the greater stature of the sector in the economy and it will push mining but at the same time ensure that it is done sustainably and without any corruption.
“Hopefully within a matter of months we’ll be able to put that structure in place within the agency,” President Bharrat Jagdeo said at a press conference at State House yesterday. Reporters quizzed him on the recent furore surrounding allegations of corruption within the agency.
Jagdeo, addressing the annual officers’ conference of the Guyana Defence Force on January 25, had said that there is need for some of them in the state agencies and he singled out the GGMC. “I need some soldiers in there. The corruption in the field is unbelievable, particularly with the price of gold where it is and I need to clean up some of this situation there too,” he had said.
“Unfortunately we don’t have the evidence of that at the moment and we’re prepared to act on any of the evidence presented,” GGMC Commissioner William Woolford told Stabroek News in a subsequent interview, where several of the agency’s department heads were also present. He had said that any concern of that nature by the head of state is definitely of concern to the GGMC.
But, he had noted, while allegations are made, most of those making the allegations do not provide written statements so that due process could be followed and this ties the agency’s hands. He had stressed that there is zero-tolerance for corrupt activities of staff and pointed to several initiatives to combat this. He had noted too that hundreds of miners have been prosecuted for infractions over the years, including some of the biggest miners.
Minister of Transport and Hydraulics, Robeson Benn subsequently said he was “surprised” at Woolford’s statements and called for “an urgent review” of the agency’s leadership. Benn- a former Commissioner of the GGMC – had said that there were “frequent issues” that come to his office. “I hope that the honourable Prime Minister would look to a rectification of this type of statement and the GGMC sets about doing an urgent review of its leadership and particularly the problems in the field and the effectiveness on the ground”, he had said.
Yesterday, the President said that he knew that there have been several charges of corruption and referred to recent comments by Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) Executive Director Edward Shields, who had spoken of police asking miners to declare their gold to them even though this was not within their mandate. “If the Commissioner doesn’t recognise that there’s corruption in the field, frankly speaking, he shouldn’t be there,” Jagdeo said. “We live in Guyana. You talk to any miner and if they’re not on the record, they’ll tell you about what happens on the ground,” he said.
Woolford, in his interview with this newspaper, had stressed that it was the reluctance of miners to make official statements in writing that tied the agency’s hands in dealing with corruption.
Jagdeo said that the Commissioner has a responsibility as head of the agency to talk to people because while there are lots of miners who may not come forward, there are “patterns.” Some miners would identify a particular officer and “when we cross-check, it’s true,” he said. Very little has been done, he added.
Jagdeo said that Woolford has functional authority over the agency and has a duty to go out into the field, talk to the miners and make changes. Woolford had said that on outreaches into the fields very few persons had come forward and those who did, did not submit written statements despite follow-ups by the agency. “Clearly there are going to be some changes at GGMC,” Jagdeo said. “We’ve been discussing this for the past six months at Cabinet. We’re currently examining a new structure for the organization. A new structure that will reflect the growth of mining in our economy, the possibility of many more new gold mines, the possibility of us finding uranium, the possibility of us finding rare earths, preparing for the oil and gas find….”
He added that the new structure will encompass the new opportunities and challenges of the sector. He noted that former army chief Joe Singh is now the Chairman of the GGMC Board and he hoped that they will pay more attention to what is going on, go into the field and talk to the miners.
Woolford is set to retire next month.
‘We’re currently examining a new structure for the organization. A new structure that will reflect the growth of mining in our economy, the possibility of many more new gold mines, the possibility of us finding uranium, the possibility of us finding rare earths, preparing for the oil and gas find…’
