Civil society group, Policy Forum Guyana (PFG) is urging a more integrated and inclusive approach to Guyanese involvement in decision-making on key issues.
It has criticised what it says is a lack of referrals to relevant scientific and technical information on Land Use Plans that are already available.
It said in a press release that these studies carried out in the 1990s identified areas for human settlement with the requisite height above sea-level, and available sources of water, stone and sand to facilitate construction of new settlements in the Bartica-Linden-Parika triangle.
The PFG release reminded Guyana’s political leaders that after a half day’s rain the city and its suburbs still flood; black-outs are still not a thing of the past, maternal deaths remain scandalously high and mini-buses remain a source of stress for all who cannot afford other means of transport. ‘Those leading the wealth narrative appear to have no accountability to those suffering the poverty,’ the release said. Indeed, the release continued, decision-makers in Guyanese society are far more attuned to overseas investors and their patrons in the international community based in Georgetown, than to the society to which they are accountable. PFG further opined that the current political thought seems to suggest that Guyana has catapulted into high-level finance and development, thus guaranteeing transformation of the society.
PFG further argues that there is something fundamentally wrong with decision-making processes in Guyana. Pointing to the much hyped gas-to-shore project, PFG’s release stated that the decision-making on this issue seems isolated and trivialized (should oil come ashore at Clonbrook or Wales – despite both sites being bereft of persuasive technical foundation.) PFG noted that the case for sober, impartial and most importantly, contextualized, decision-making on the proposed oil-to-gas project was persuasively set out by oil consultant, Jan Mangal, in the Sunday Stabroek (3/14/21). Citing Mangal’s critique, PFG’s release stated that ‘both sites for the gas-to-shore project may well be underwater in 20 to 30 years’ and that expert’s (Mangal) criticism “injects a much-needed dose of realism into the fantasies currently driving the energy narrative as a whole.”
Citing a list of bankrupt projects around the world, the release suggested that Guyana is not singular in making poor investment decisions with respect to infrastructure (Skeldon Sugar Factory, Amaila Falls, and the Cheddi Jagan International Airport). The release added that most major infrastructure projects suffer from routine over-estimating of benefits, under-estimating costs and relying on hopelessly optimistic time-frames. Specialized private consultancy companies engaged to help develop project proposals are generally reported to show high professional standards, but they equally appear to focus on justifying projects due to political pressure rather than critically scrutinizing them. The odds stacked against successfully meeting all of these inter-linked challenges are formidable.
PFG recommended that together these issues present inter-connected political and governance issues requiring unprecedented mobilization of civic, business as well as political energies. It said that the only way this experience can end well for Guyana is through a collective effort based on a common vision shared across business, civic and political sectors, together with the best local and international expertise based on competence, and processes characterized by transparency, impartiality and inclusive governance.
PFG says it is a network of civic organizations that came into existence in 2015 with the general aim of strengthening electoral, environmental and financial accountability.
