Commissioner of Information Charles Ramson Snr has informed local activist Jonathan Yearwood that he has officially written to the Ministry of Housing requesting a copy of the contract(s) entered into by the ministry and Impressions Inc relating to the International Building Expo.
The letter comes almost three months after Yearwood initially wrote to Ramson Snr seeking the information.
Yearwood on Friday told Stabroek News that he had a meeting with Ramson Snr, who explained that a letter was dispatched to the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Housing and Water.
“We had a meeting and I must say that the Commissioner of Information has been really helpful. He sat down with me and explained every part of his letter to the Ministry and said that they are bounded by the law to respond to the request,” Yearwood explained.
He added that Ramson Snr also informed him that there is still no guarantee as to whether the Ministry would provide the requested information.
“So it is now a waiting game. We have to wait on the Permanent Secretary to respond and Mr Ramson said that once that response has been received then he would inform me. Progress has been slow but we are getting somewhere now because it has been months since I have written to the Ministry to request this information.
“For now I will wait and see what will happen but Mr Ramson said that the ministry is bounded by law to respond to the letter and provide an answer. So let’s see how long that will take,” Yearwood said.
Yearwood, who initially wrote to Ramson Snr requesting the documents, was instructed to write Minister of Housing Collin Croal for the information. He did so but did not receive any update from the Ministry. That letter was dispatched on July 18 but to date, there has been no acknowledgement from the Ministry.
As Stabroek News previously reported, Impressions Inc appeared to be the sole company of its kind selected to organise and run the ongoing International Building Expo at the Providence Stadium. Croal previously told this publication that Impressions was not running the Expo, but that the ministry had set up a secretariat within the company’s building to deal with members of the public who were interested in being a part of the Expo. He cited a lack of space at the ministry for this arrangement.
However, when Stabroek News visited Impressions’ office to take a photograph of the secretariat, it was told that the owner, Patrick `Neal’ Sukhlal, had to give permission for it to do so. A staff member said that Sukhlal was responsible for the secretariat. Also on the Building Expo website, Impressions’ email and phone number were listed as contacts. A call to the number listed verified information that Impressions was responsible for organizing and running the Building Expo. The company is the one that exhibitors had to contact to acquire and pay for a spot.
In response to that report, Yearwood wrote to Ramson Snr asking for copies of the relevant contracts and associated documents. In his application, Yearwood listed a number of concerns he has in relation to the arrangement between the Ministry and Impressions
He submitted that vast sums of money were being collected and processed by a private company on behalf of a government Ministry and questioned whether the company will be utilizing its private bank account to receive and use the government’s finances.
“Given that it is a private company, Government expenses will be paid for utilizing the Company’s cash and bank accounts [and] official expenses on behalf of the Government could be paid through a private entity’s account. The requirements of the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Act of Guyana could be bypassed. We are concerned that the Company could or would report large receipts and or payments from circumstances and transactions described by the Act,” Yearwood’s application stated.
He also questioned the fees being charged by the company for the services that were provided.
Premium packages for spots at the Building Expo were listed at $8 million, Gold packages at $5 million and Silver at $3 million. Other smaller packages were listed at $1 million, $500,000, $450,000, $380,000, $200,000, $120,000, $60,000, with the cheapest being $15,000 for a table space.
Additionally, Yearwood has also submitted a letter requesting access to the contracts entered into between Impressions Inc and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport for branding services for the ongoing Guyana Cricket Carnival. The Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport is headed by Ramson Snr’s son, Charles Ramson Jr.
