Facing concern by coalition partner AFC over the extensive powers of Minister of State Joseph Harmon, President David Granger last evening defended his APNU colleague, saying his duties are not “burdensome” and no objections had been raised before.
The AFC’s alarm was triggered largely by Harmon’s controversial appointment of businessman Brian Tiwarie as a Ministerial Advisor on Business Development although Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo, who is AFC vice-chairman, yesterday suggested that he saw nothing wrong in Harmon’s appointment of Tiwarie even as he maintained that his powers should be trimmed. Nagamootoo said that Harmon was an “honest” person and Tiwarie should not be blamed for the fiasco. Further, he also said “some hysteria has been drawn into this thing and it carries with it some type of political witch-hunting.”
It was not clear who Nagamootoo was referring to but he made it clear he was not a “witch-hunter” even as he declined to comment on whether Harmon should be disciplined. He also did not respond directly to whether there had been a lack of judgement on Harmon’s part in appointing Tiwarie, pointing instead to Granger’s revocation of the appointment.
Following the launch of Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) 50-year-old rum in honour of Guyana’s 50th Independence Anniversary yesterday, Granger was asked about the AFC’s call to pare Harmon’s powers.
“As far as I am concerned, there is no overburdening of the ministry and I don’t see what powers they mean to reduce,” Granger responded. He said he did not think Harmon’s duties were so “burdensome” that he could not handle all his responsibilities.
“I am standing by the duties which were assigned to him last May and this is what we were working with for the last 11 months and this is what was explained to the Cabinet retreat in January,” the President declared.
On Sunday, following a leadership retreat, the AFC said the concentration of various powers in Harmon was the key reason for difficulties that have flared up around the government. The party, which is the smaller of the partners in the APNU+AFC coalition government, specifically highlighted Harmon’s appointment of Tiwarie. More recently, government has faced accusations that Harmon had interfered with the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and halted its planned seizure of vehicles belonging to controversial Chinese logging company, Baishanlin.
The AFC noted that the powers of the office of the Cabinet Secretary, the Minister of State in the Ministry of the Presidency and the effective Head of the Presidential Secretariat are vested in Harmon. It argued that the responsibilities of each of the portfolios are substantial and of vital importance to the smooth operations of the government and would, therefore, benefit from separate appointments. “The Alliance for Change has mandated its leadership in Cabinet to have these issues raised and addressed as a matter of national importance,” the statement said.
Yesterday, Granger said he was not sure what the AFC meant. “I don’t know exactly what they mean by that. I have to listen to them tomorrow at Cabinet if it’s gonna be raised. We had a retreat earlier this year and we put out a very clear statement on the responsibilities of all 14 ministers and the Ministry of the Presidency. So there is a book, it’s stated, and nobody made any objection to the duties which were assigned to the Minister of State then and it would be surprising after two months that people feel that the duties have been, you know, misused or they need to be trimmed,” he said.
Harmon has been enveloped in controversy since it was publicly disclosed that he had appointed Tiwarie as a business advisor. The disclosure, months after the appointment, triggered an avalanche of criticism and further disclosures which have left the administration groping for answers. Within a day, Granger rescinded Tiwarie’s appointment, saying that his services were not needed.
Breaking his silence yesterday, Tiwarie said he had been appointed as a personal advisor to Harmon and not to the government and charged that he was the subject of a political vendetta as he criticised Granger for acting “impulsively” in rescinding the appointment. He said although he and Harmon travelled together to China, this was coincidental. (See story on page 3)
Harmon has not spoken publicly on the allegations even as Granger has defended him. Yesterday, Granger reiterated that Harmon went to China on an official assignment related to government’s holding company, NICIL, “I understand and which I approve and he has reported on that matter.”
‘No violation of honesty’
Meanwhile, Nagamootoo told reporters that Harmon is a person of “integrity” and suggested that he saw nothing wrong in the minister’s appointment of Tiwarie. “In the context on what is alleged in the BK Tiwarie issue, I can see no violation of honesty,” Nagamootoo declared.
He said he used to be close to the late president Dr Cheddi Jagan, who would try to enlist “dollar-a-year” persons from varying sectors to lend their expertise to the government at no cost.
“Therefore, that concept of enlisting people, the concept, the principle, is not corrupt; the principle of asking someone to advise a minister or a functionary of state, it’s not a repudiatory principle because I know of a president who wanted dollar-a-year advisors. And I don’t see this could be an occasion for personal vendetta because Mr Brian Tiwarie is not responsible for the action of a government official,” Nagamootoo said.
Further, he declared, a headline in the Guyana Chronicle, ‘BK booted,’ was “insensitive and misleading” because it “shifts the focus of an executive action to that of a person who is the recipient of an appointment.”
The Prime Minister questioned why Tiwarie should be “put on trial” for the action of an official. “I think some hysteria has been drawn into this thing and it carries with it some type of political witch-hunting. And I’m not the one who go after people’s head. I’m not a witch-hunter,” he declared.
“The issue of the appointment has to be whether there was a lack of judgement, whether there was an error in making the appointment,” Nagamootoo said. Asked whether he believed there was a lack of judgement, Nagamootoo did not respond directly. “I think that the President has rescinded the appointment and that rescission speaks for itself,” he said.
In terms of the AFC’s call for the trimming of Harmon’s responsibilities, the Prime Minister said traditionally, the position of the secretary to Cabinet has always been a position held by a public servant or at most a retired public servant “because that is a very specialised position, specialised duties and public service, traditional or professional public service, they know the requirement of secrecy, confidentiality and even the follow-up of Cabinet decisions.
“So, ideally, if you want to think of someone who can hold that position, I would say that I would be a traditionalist, go back to what could happen before the Luncheonian transition was made to lump everything in one person.”
Nagamootoo pointed to the many responsibilities held by Harmon and he said the AFC’s call has nothing to do with an indictment of anyone or Harmon.
“I subscribe also that he is an honest person. I have worked with him,” he said, while emphasizing that they are talking not about a person but about responsibilities, how to diffuse and share responsibilities so that it may not be too cumbersome on one person to handle and juggle many portfolios.
In terms of whether Harmon should be disciplined, Nagamootoo declined to comment.
