Embattled Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Mae Toussaint Jr. Thomas, is still on leave and receiving pay, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo yesterday confirmed.
“Yes, she is still on leave and she is receiving pay.”
This newspaper understands that Toussaint Jr. Thomas will “remain on leave until government receives information sought from the (US) DOJ (Department of Justice) and undertakes its own investigations into that.”
In June of this year, amid US sanctions over alleged corruption, the Stabroek News had reported that Toussaint Jr. Thomas, had resigned from the executive of the PPP/C, but her position as Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Labour remains up in the air.
It was Jagdeo who had announced the resignation saying that she had indicated that she “did not want to bring the party into disrepute… she said ‘I’m available. I maintain my innocence and I’m available for any investigation.’”
He explained that Thomas’ resignation from the party was a hard blow as she was one of the hardest workers on the team and this was seen from her efforts during the 2020 Elections period and beyond.
“This is a hard thing because she is a tough worker. Those people who know her in the party know how hard she worked in the party,” he said.
Jagdeo said that as government investigates the allegations, Thomas “understands that she will have to face the consequences,” but he believes that her being caught up in the investigations and being sanctioned “is still unfortunate from a human perspective.”
In June, the government was advised by Washington that any information concerning the sanctions against the Mohamed family and Toussaint Jr. Thomas would need to be obtained through the US Department of Justice (DoJ).
Then in August, Attorney General Anil Nandlall had said that the DOJ has acknowledged Guyana’s request for information related to sanctions imposed on Toussaint Jr Thomas, and businessmen Nazar Mohamed, and son Azruddin.
Following the sanctions imposed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on June 11, the Guyanese government had contacted the US authorities to request information that would support its investigation into the affected individuals. These requests were sent by Minister of Finance Dr Ashni Singh and the Commissioner General of the Guyana Revenue Authority, Godfrey Statia under the Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) between Guyana and the US.
The TIEA allows for the exchange of information to enforce tax laws, prevent fraud, and ensure accurate tax assessments. The government anticipates that both the mutual legal assistance process and the TIEA will enable timely and effective information sharing.
The US has said that Toussaint Thomas used her office while serving at the Ministry of Home Affairs, to offer benefits to the Mohameds that included contracts, licences for weapons, and passports.
Neither the Mohameds nor Toussaint Jr Thomas had said anything though they had previously denied involvement in illegalities following varying allegations.
OFAC – a financial intelligence and enforcement agency of the US Treasury Department – designated Azruddin Mohamed and Mohamed’s Enterprise “for being persons who have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery, that is conducted by a foreign person.”
OFAC also designated Nazar Mohamed as being “a foreign person who is or has been a leader or official of Mohamed’s Enterprise, an entity whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 13818, as a result of activities related to Nazar’s tenure.”
As for Toussaint Jr Thomas, OFAC designated her as being “a foreign person who is a current or former government official, or a person acting for or on behalf of such an official, who is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery.”
On June 14, United States Ambassador to Guyana, Nicole Theriot, said that the investigation leading to the sanctioning of the Mohameds and Permanent Secretary Mae Toussaint Jr. Thomas was more than two years in the making and that information could not be provided to anyone here lest it be compromised.
“These sanctions were two and a half years plus of investigations ongoing in the United States. We reserve these type of sanctions for gross levels of corruption and human rights abuses,” the Ambassador told reporters at the US Embassy, Georgetown, on the sidelines of a press conference held by United States Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, Bonnie Jenkins.
