Dear Editor,
Guyanese at home and in the diaspora are paying closer attention to developments in Guyana and are asking policymakers to begin connecting the dots in light of recent developments in the fight against financial crimes and corruption.
To begin, it is now public knowledge that Sam Sittlington, who up until his recent firing from SOCU, had set up and incorporated a local branch of his UK company to undertake the same functions of SOCU. Sittlington’s actions represented a clear conflict of interest and his subsequent dismissal was fully justified.
A few days before Sittlington’s dismissal, Guyanese learnt that the leading investigator at SOCU, Ms Sherronie James had resigned. News of Ms James’ surprise resignation was followed by a vicious attempt at besmirching her name by recognised political trolls on social media. It was as though they felt a sense of relief and wanted to besmirch her character in vengeance. Take note that the Leader of the Opposition Mr Jagdeo welcomed her resignation.
I do not know Ms James personally but I have sat in the courts and on at least one occasion, I witnessed her presenting evidence of her academic qualifications to the court. Nevertheless, in light of her resignation, I have consulted widely with stakeholders about her and the feedback I have had is that she is a person of the highest integrity, professionalism, high intelligence and by far the most accomplished investigator to ever walk through the doors of SOCU. The record number of the matters she has before the courts presents a measure of her output.
No organisation, especially one engaged in the fight against corruption and financial crimes, gets rid of or allows its leading resource to leave. Successful organisations do everything in their power to retain and keep their most valuable resources. Pre-departure interviews are hastily arranged to identify motivation for leaving and to offer solutions in order to retain those resources. They do not passively sit by and allow their valuable people to depart. It’s simply unheard of. As a result, questions must be asked about the intentions behind this seemingly calculated and manipulative move to let loose the Special Superintendent from SOCU. Everyone I have spoken to has lamented the significant impact Ms James’ departure will have on the work of SOCU and the very real risk now, that evidence gathered will no longer lead to charges and ongoing matters of critical public interest in the courts will now collapse.
What is especially of interest to Guyanese is that the Opposition Leader has all along been challenging the Government and SOCU to present the evidence of corruption and financial crimes and questions are now being asked if it is by strange coincidence that at this point, just before a landmark elections, when SOCU is on the verge of presenting evidence (which is of significant public interest) of the massive looting of the country’s resources, there has been a political move to let go of unarguably SOCU’s most successful investigator.
I believe it’s by no means just a simple coincidence that just as SOCU has started receiving significant cooperation from international countries on investigations into financial crimes – a significant accomplishment for SOCU – that its leading investigator has found reason to tender her resignation and the resignation accepted.
Speculation and questions abound about the reason and strategy behind Sittlington not just registering but incorporating a local entity which, from all indications, has been designed to replicate the work that SOCU presently undertakes. Is it possible that Sittlington was positioning his company to pick up investigative work should there be a change in government given that the leader of the Opposition Mr Jagdeo has already said that it would be the PPP’s intention, if they regain power at the next elections, to scrap SOCU and hire an international company to do the work that SOCU presently performs? Did Sittlington have a hand in Ms James’ decision to resign?
Reading between the lines of the press release Ms James issued to clarify her reasons for resignation, there is much to be inferred. I believe it is clear that her departure from SOCU has more to do with a sinister plot to frustrate those matters before the courts and suffocate the emergence of hard evidence of financial fraud and corruption. The word on the street is that SOCU has been infiltrated by staunch political PPP sympathisers who are intent on frustrating the work of professionals like Ms James at SOCU.
The Ministry of Public Security cannot sit by and allow the departure of Ms James from SOCU at this time. The work she has been doing at SOCU is too valuable to be lost to sinister political self-preservation. Ms James should be provided with all the support and security necessary at this time and allowed to continue the invaluable work she has started at SOCU.
Guyanese are closely watching and should not be taken for granted.
History is being recorded.
Yours faithfully,
Peter Narine
Toronto, Canada
