Leader of the Alliance For Change, Khemraj Ramjattan on Friday said that his party believes that the planned Palmyra stadium and multipurpose facility on the Corentyne should have been discussed in the National Assembly as he called the project an example of “bad governance”.
He accused the PPP/C of attempting to avoid scrutiny.
President Irfaan Ali last week launched the construction of the $3.7 billion stadium and multipurpose facility at Palmyra, Region Six, with funds from ExxonMobil’s Greater Guyana Initiative (GGI). At the location, Ali had stated that there will be no excuses for not delivering the project on time. It is scheduled to be completed by 2025.
However, Ramjattan on Friday said that the project is an example of “bad governance.” He said, “A project such as this ought to have been deliberated on in our National Assembly. It does appear that a clever bypass has mutually been agreed to by Exxon and the government.”
Ramjattan said, that the government instead of pursuing a renegotiated deal which would have seen those sums in the Natural Resource Fund and subjected to parliamentary scrutiny and deliberation, “the AFC sees this clever piece of scheming as allowing spending at the behest of the PPP with no public institutional deliberation and scrutiny by the elected representatives of Guyana.”
According to him, this path seems to be an “escape route” from transparency and good governance “and even the provisions of the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act and the Procurement Act.”
Ramjattan added that his party notes that the company slated to build the Palmyra stadium and multipurpose facility was granted a contract “without any procuring process whatsoever.”
Ramjattan said that instead his party would have opted to spend the sum allocated for the stadium and multipurpose facility on community grounds at Skeldon, Whim, Port Mourant, Albion, Canje and Edinburgh.
“This approach would be far more beneficial and directly impactful for the young people and the sporting community in Region Six”, he said.
The government has also earmarked monies in its yearly budget to offset the rehabilitation of community grounds. In its 2022 budget, $3.2 billion was allocated for sports with $250 million being earmarked for the improvement of community grounds.
Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Charles Ramson since entering office has visited the community grounds in Region Six on several occasions and upgrades have been ongoing. In some instances, new lights were placed and rebuilding of fences, washrooms, gates, pavilions, and works on the grounds themselves, etc. were done.
