Dear Editor,
The revelations by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo about the allocation of land to certain government functionaries are startling. And, the responses are alarming!
Jagdeo alleged that after the passage of the Motion of No Confidence people with access to sensitive government plans to develop certain oil-related infrastructure secured land that can be flipped for fortunes. The implication is that these applications were fast-tracked without the requisite business plans or demonstrated access to capital to develop the land.
For starters, every Guyanese regardless of race, creed, class, political affiliation, or resident status should be entitled to obtain land as long as they can demonstrate that they can put the land to productive use. The land is Guyana’s patrimony belonging to all Guyanese. If someone wants to get a piece of land to build a house or a palace, fine, have it. This cannot include the holding of land for speculative purposes, especially if the speculation is based on “insider” information. Acquiring land on the basis of such information is corruption and should be treated as such. All leases granted after the passage of the Motion of No Confidence should be subject to review.
And, further bad news for the lessees is that all land acquired as part of corrupt deals will fall under the ambit of the United States Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the Canadian “Corruption of Foreign Public Officials Act,” and the OECD Convention on Preventing the Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in Internationals Business Transactions. So, folks you entered into bad deals! You will not be saved by SOCU or SARA or Jane. Uncle Sam will look at the transactions, and no American company will purchase or lease from you land corruptly acquired. Please check www.justice.gov/ criminal/ fraud/ fcpa for further information. They have already been alerted to look out for these transactions.
The most fascinating part of all of this is that Guyana Lands and Survey Commissioner Trevor Benn threatened to sic the police on Jagdeo and his employees for stealing his “clients’” confidential information. His clients’ confidential information? Since when all the land of Guyana belongs to Benn to allocate as he sees fit? The Opposition Leader does not have a right to bring to the Public’s attention suspicious transactions?
Yours faithfully,
Randy Depoo