Dear Editor,
Guyana with its recent massive oil and gas discoveries has become a battleground for various stakeholders vying for control, influence, and the potential benefits from this booming sector. As the country moves forwards on its path to harness its newfound wealth, it must carefully navigate numerous challenges and conflicts to ensure that the oil and gas sector is developed in a fair, transparent, and sustainable manner. It is at this point, the intersection of development and fairness, we see clear signs that flag this sector as Guyana’s newest battleground. Many elements indispensable to good governance and democracy are struggling to breathe or have become casualties on this battleground. These include truth, ethics, integrity, transparency, accountability, fairness, justice, inclusive governance, reasonableness, equality, environmental and social stability, and geopolitics.
The first three casualties are truth, transparency and accountability.
In September 2023, we learnt from reports in certain sections of the media that there was an attempt to reduce questionable cost oil claims flagged by IHS Markit of US$214 Million to US$3 Million. Individuals other than those authorised at the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) went beyond their authority to deal with that issue.
Subsequently, the Minister of Natural Resources, Mr. Vickram Bharrat, flippantly laid the blame squarely at the feeble feet of unknown officials in the ministry of which he is the Minister- Ministry of Natural Resources. Subsequently, on September 21st the Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo, at a press conference, reported words to the effect that President Irfaan Ali had ordered that an investigation be conducted post haste, to discover who authorised or instructed officers at the Ministry of Natural Resources to ignore or disregard advice from the GRA and enter into direct negotiations with ExxonMobil to reduce US$214 Million to US$3 Million.
No one is surprised that about fifteen days after that public announcement, by the Vice President, nothing has been done to initiate this crucial investigation. It is clear that, the government is either unwilling to conduct the probe because it is fully aware of what actually transpired with that particular issue or that President Ali and his party – PPP/C – are demonstratively disrespectful and contemptuous of the Guyanese people. Either one, or both of those mentioned reasons put our nation in the very same position of corruption at a frightening scale, in governmental circles, where the elite and close associates of the government massively benefit from the oil and gas sector. This by and of itself facilitates a disability, on the part of Guyanese, fatal to public trust in the government’s ability to manage the country’s wealth in an honest, transparent and accountable manner. No one was fooled by the loud farcical lamentations and fringed ignorance of this matter, by certain high government officials. I still cannot understand why the PPP/C believes that its ministers and officials could talk any nonsense about important issues, such as the one at hand, and think that Guyanese are so gullible and simple- minded to buy into such foolishness. Given the authoritarian character of this government, how is it even remotely possible for any official in any ministry or government agency, under the PPP/C, to enter into direct or even indirect talks with ExxonMobil to reduce US$214 million to US$3 million without the knowledge and/or fiat of the political bosses? This behaviour is part of a pattern by the incumbent. In April of this year, using the ruse of partisanship, the government has bypassed the International Decade for People of African Descent Assembly- Guyana (IDPADA-G) to give money directly to Afro- organisations.
Again, two days ago, President Ali and other officials of his government bypassed the Teachers Union – teachers’ representatives – and held talks directly with headteachers; a sort of union busting; divide and rule approach. Why should anyone believe that the attempt to bypass advice from the Guyana Revenue Authority is not part of an established pattern of concealment, and authoritarian behaviour of the Ali-led government. It is corroding the not strong foundation of our fragile democracy.
I get the impression that, for some strange reason, the government thinks to itself, demonstrated by its actions and practices, that it can do whatsoever it wants without consequences. But the incumbent must know that while Guyanese might appear to be powerless to demand answers and to take appropriate actions, the weight of the greed, corruption and other evil vices that have viciously invaded the very soul of that party, the PPP/C, would inevitably cause its massive collapse.
Yours faithfully,
Roysdale Forde S.C.,M.P.
