Head of the Guyana Oil and Gas Energy Chamber Manniram Prashad on Thursday met with CARICOM Secretary General Dr Carla Barnett and asked that the regional body de-recognize the Caribbean Private Sector Organization (CPSO).
CPSO has expressed reservations about the legality of some of the provisions of Guyana’s recently enacted local content law and has said that it would inform CARICOM of its concerns.
“We told her that we felt that what was wrong is that the process was flawed in forming the business body and that we are going to write her and all of the CARICOM heads of government objecting to the CPSO. We also asked that CARICOM suspends recognition of the body and begin a process to [move] into the formulation of a new body, which will have the consensus of all states,” Prashad, a founding member of Guyana’s Private Sector Commission, told Stabroek News following the meeting.
“We made it pellucid that we are not fighting CARICOM and believe that such a body and concept was good but that the process used to form this one was flawed,” he added.
Prashad said that he believes the meeting with Dr. Barnett went “excellent” and that she acknowledged that they will formally write her office registering their concerns and asking for the suspension of the CPSO.
Guyana’s Private Sector Commission-affiliate bodies here and the business community have said that the CPSO has never reached out to them and it was baffling that it would raise objections about this country’s local content.
“They have never visited Guyana to meet with the Private Sector Commission or approached for local representation. As a founding and active member of the PSC, I can tell you there were no consultations in Guyana. I mean anybody can make statements but when you have a name like Caribbean Private Sector Organisation and you put your accreditation with CARICOM it is another issue and I am concerned,” Prashad had previously told this newspaper as he announced that he would have been seeking audience with CARICOM on the issue.
“The process of recognizing the body and its process of formation is what we … have a problem with. We are not sure of those processes and I can say that the CPSO was horridly put together. There must be consensus and format,” he added.
Persaud said that he finds it illogical that a body would be given accreditation from CARICOM without countries in the region first having national consultations, as he pointed to the fact that neither Guyana’s nor Jamaica’s apex private sector bodies have representative members.
It is to this end that he informed that his organization, the Guyana Oil and Gas Energy Chamber, planned to write CARICOM to set up a meeting with the business community’s representatives here to register their concerns and discuss ways the matter can be resolved.
“We should not jump and say that we should boycott CARICOM or this or that. I am not advocating for anyone to leave CARICOM. It is too much of a good organisation to this region. We are not against a CPSO but we have to be aware of what process was used to derive at that. It must be done in a proper way,” Prashad, who was once Minister of Commerce for this country, said.
