Whenever accusing fingers are pointed at the political administration – whether by Transparency International, the US State Department or local pressure groups – in the matter of corruption, it never fails to respond with touchiness, charging its accusers with transgressions ranging from spitefulness to political bias. Having long lost the moral high ground, it’s clear that the government finds corruption-related criticisms irksome.
The claim by Transparency International (TI) that Guyana is at the top of the pile in the region has again rattled the government. Some of its key officials have been thrown into the affray. Its response – more or less – has been that the corruption claims are trumped up, without basis and politically motivated.
This time around, there is hollow ring to those protestations. Setting aside what the government has always claimed are baseless, politically driven claims, TI’s most recent charges of corruption have been preceded by some pretty forthright pronouncements on