Ramps Logistics Guyana Inc., is no longer pursuing its claim for costs in the case it won against Government which was ordered by a Court to award the company its local content certificate.
When the matter came up for report before acting Chief Justice Roxane George SC yesterday morning, attorney for Ramps Logistics, Ron Motilall, informed that the company would be discontinuing its claim for cost.
Solicitor General Nigel Hawke, affirmed that that was indeed the course taken by the parties.
No further details were given by either side.
In the circumstances, the Chief Justice noted that with no orders having to be made as to costs, that final issue which had been outstanding, is now settled.
Finding that Ramps Logistics had satisfied every requirement of the Local Content Act, the Chief Justice in a ruling delivered on November 11th last, ordered Head of the Local Content Secretariat, Martin Pertab, to ensure that the company was issued its Certificate of Registration.
Ramps had withdrawn its claim for damages, but remained resolute that it would be pursuing costs against the Government.
At a hearing last month, Motilall was firm in pointing out that the company will be pursuing that claim.
Hawke had said, however, that government “is always open to trying to find ways of not litigating these matters” and against that background had begged the Court for an opportunity where both sides could again look at the issue with what he described as a “greater measure of compromise” in a bid to arrive at an amicable resolution.
Background
In keeping with Justice George’s ruling, Government issued the Certificate to Ramps.
Ramps had moved to the Court for judicial review seeking a number of declarations, among them that the decision of the Minister of Natural Resources and/or the Secretariat on June 8th 2022 refusing to grant the certification was unlawful.
Ramps which considers itself a Guyanese company since it is registered here and has been in existence since 2013, argued that it was entitled to be issued a certificate of registration and to be entered into the Local Content Register in accordance with Section 6 of the Local Content Act.
In her ruling, the Chief Justice found that Ramps Logistics had satisfied every requirement of the Local Content Act and made the order for the company to be granted certification.
The Chief Justice had said that both the Minister and the Secretariat had breached the Act. In fact she made it clear that “the Minister had, and has no authority under the Local Content Act, to grant or refuse certification.”
Further, she said that the Secretariat misconstrued the Act and had taken irrelevant factors into consideration, such as pending criminal charges against the company which she said had “absolutely” no bearing on the determination of whether certification should be granted or not.
