Oil & Gas
AG should be concerned Guyana has ceded legislative sovereignty to Exxon – Ram: Attorney at law and commentator Christopher Ram has said that Attorney General Anil Nandlall SC should be concerned that Guyana has ceded legislative sovereignty to ExxonMobil. In a letter that appears in December 19th edition of the Stabroek News, Ram was referring to, among other things, the Stability clause in the much-criticised 2016 Pro-duction Sharing Agreement (PSA) with ExxonMobil which circumscribes legislative changes. Ram’s comment came as public concern grows that statements made by the Attorney General following Thursday’s meeting between President Irfaan Ali and Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appear intended to curtail the strong local criticism of ExxonMobil over what has been seen as an exploitative deal. Nandlall on Saturday sounded a note of caution about what he termed “reckless speculative pontification” and “loose public statements” on the Venezuela controversy, arguing that such had harmed this country in its border issue with its neighbour to the east, Suriname. He then went on to apply that same need for discretion as it relates to ExxonMobil, stating that at the Thursday meeting, President Maduro was armed with several volumes of documents. “Many of those were compilations of public statements made on this matter, critical commentaries on the operations of Esso Exploration and Production Guyana Limited (EEPGL) and the several legal proceedings filed in relation thereto – all extracted from our local media. “These are materials which Venezuela is using to bolster their narrative. Whatever weight is placed upon them, they certainly do not and will not assist Guyana in any form or fashion. “In the future, therefore, those who wish to travel this road by making such statements, or taking such actions, must now become alive to this consequential reality”, the Attorney General said.
Legislative
Appropriation bill of $25.9b approved: The National Assembly last Tuesday passed the Supplementary Appro-priation Bill No.3 which gives approval to the Government of Guyana to access $1.8b from the Contingency Fund and the green light for over $24b in supplementary funding. Minister with Responsibility For Finance, Dr Ashni Singh last week tabled Financial Paper No. 4/2023 – Supplementary Estimates (Current and Capital) – “Advances made from the Contingency Fund totaling $1,899,647,334 for the period 2023-10-01 to 2023-12-08.” The paper caters to advances for various agencies which include the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Ministry of Education. $785,808,944 from the financial paper catered for heightened security across government facilities in regions one, two, six, and nine, while $643,690,000 from the paper catered for the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) for operational costs. The National Assembly resolved itself into the Committee of Supply yesterday just before midday, allowing the Opposition the opportunity to pose questions to the various ministers about the amounts they were seeking for the various ministries after which the Committee of Supply approved the paper. Following this, the financial paper was then passed in the National Assembly granting the government over $1.8b from the Contingency Fund. Meanwhile, Minister Singh last week also tabled Financial Paper No. 5/2023 – Supplementary Estimates (Current and Capital) totaling $24,044,095,908 for the period ending 2023-12-31, which was passed in the National Assembly just around 9.22 pm after receiving approval for the Committee of Supply. Over $12.3b from the supplementary funding caters to the agriculture sector which includes provisions for subsidies and contributions to local agencies along with additional resources for the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA). Further, over $1b was sought under the Ministry of Public Works for the maintenance of roads, procurement of equipment, and for the Transport and Harbours Department.
Investment
Investor frustrated at delay in concluding Marriott deal: The prospective purchaser of the Marriott Hotel Guyana has expressed frustration at the months that have passed without the conclusion of the transaction. “I am holding on for a long time it is hurting future investments for Guyana”, Ramy El- Batrawi said in an interview with the Sunday Stabroek. It has been seven months since El-Batrawi submitted the winning bid of US$90m in a revamped invitation for the Kingston hotel. He said that he has been waiting all the time and he plans to visit next month in relation to the closing of the contract. Although he commended the Government for their works he says the waiting process is tedious for the closure of what would be a simple contract. “Dragging things out makes people lose interest”, El-Batrawi, who had the highest bid twice this year for the internationally-branded hotel chain, said. The response from the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) on closing the deal has been slow, taking months to respond to simple queries, he lamented. El-Batrawi said that this is quite frustrating since he has other investments he would like to pursue. NICIL’s last word to Stabroek News was that the matter was being finalized. In 2022, he came here for the first time on an exploratory trip to figure out the best investment avenues. This led him to have talks with both the subject minister and the President at which point they told him about the hotel. An eager El-Batrawi wasted no time and entered the bidding process. “The Marriott is more like a trophy property and the government doesn’t need to own this type of property since it is bit of a distraction”, he said. He continued “in the United States we turn contracts around in weeks, latest two months”. He explained that after the bid was closed on the property it was handed to NICIL to complete the process but “6-7 months later there is still no contract to close on”. He feels they are not motivated. “They brought in attorneys that changed things which we agreed on prior…these attorneys are not deal-making attorneys but deal- breaking attorneys”, the Egypt-born US investor said. El-Batrawi also has his eyes on other sectors for investments in Guyana however the long waiting process to close one contract is quite mind-numbing and if the process takes any longer he may pull the plug on the deal entirely. He was encouraged by a few reputable businessmen from around the world who encouraged him to consider Guyana as a possible investment opportunity. “The Emir of Qatar even recommended Guyana”, he said.
Accountability
Poor quality works done on schools under Region Four: Several schools built with funds from Region Four have shown severe defects according to the Auditor General’s report for 2022 which was laid in the National Assembly last Monday. The report said that a contract for construction of the Vryheid’s Lust South Nursery School was awarded on May 10, 2022 by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) in the sum of $31m. The contract was signed on June 2nd 2022 with a start date of June 10, 2022 and a completion date of December 23, 2022. The full amount was paid to the contractor. Physical verification on July 27, 2023 showed that the works were substantially completed but defective and poor quality works were in evidence. Areas on the ceiling showed visible signs of moisture in the ceiling, there was “shoddy” painting and poor work around window sills prior to painting. The head of the budget agency said that corrective works would be done. The audit office recommended that the regional administration should carefully inspect all completed works and should not accept poor quality and sub-standard work.
Crime
Missing Crabwood Creek man found in shallow grave: A man who was reported missing was last Tuesday found buried in a shallow grave in the backlands of Crabwood Creek, Upper Corentyne. Ghowcharran Persaud, 37, of Grant 1805 Crabwood Creek, Upper Corentyne reportedly went on a fishing trip with two friends identified as ‘Ameer’ and ‘Bharrat’ on Thursday last. Relatives said that the men were expected to return on Saturday. However, Persaud’s brother, Pravesh Persaud relayed that Thursday morning his brother visited his house and told him that he would be heading to the area to fish. “Any where he a go he does come tell me who he a go with and he say them a go catch fish and he seh he a go with Ameer. He pack up he bag and Ameer come and collect he.” However, according to the brother on Saturday morning ‘Ameer’ visited his home and claimed that Bharrat shot Persaud. The brother said, “Ameer say that Bharrat fire five shot pon them and when me brother fall down he (Bharrat) run fa shoot Ameer and Ameer run.” Ameer has reportedly claimed that he rode his motorcycle with a punctured wheel to escape. The matter was reported and the man’s body was eventually found by relatives.
Two killed as Victoria party ends in melee: A night of enjoyment ended in tragedy after two young men were stabbed and chopped to death in the wee hours of last Sunday morning by persons unknown while at a party on the East Coast Demerara (ECD). Dead are Youfie Eusi Bobb, 23, and William Montrose, 26, both of Victoria, ECD, who were among several people who were attacked at the Barber Josh Construction Party in their village. Reports are that a scuffle broke out during which weapons were drawn and the party ended abruptly. Eyewitnesses said that some people were stabbed while some others were chopped. While Bobb and Montrose were killed, several others were rushed to the hospital in critical condition. There appeared to be no clear understanding of what might have caused the incident. However, some individuals believe it started when a group of men tried to rob Montrose of his gold chain. Stabroek News spoke with Montrose’s mother Desire Holder, who said that after the incident the police showed up at her home looking for her son in connection with a robbery when in fact he was dead. “The police said that they were told it was a robbery,” Holder said. “Indeed it was and they had wanted to know where William was. But we told them that we didn’t know because he did not come home. Only to hear they kill him and he was in a drain on the Middle Walk trench.” She said she believed that he was killed over his gold chain.
