In our article of 9 October 2023, we had stated that the award of the contract for the construction of sluice and pump station at Belle View, West Bank Demerara, violated the Procurement Act for two main reasons, the contractor’s lack of the requisite experience in undertaking works of this nature as stipulated in the bid documents; and the contractor’s bid was the third lowest responsive bid.
Last Monday was Budget Day 2024 – the day that everyone was looking forward to for an assessment of the performance of the country’s economy in 2023 and its state of affairs at the end of that year.
In last week’s article, we referred to the exchanges between Chartered Accountant and Attorney-at-law Christopher Ram, and the Attorney General as to whether the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) has been overstated to the extent of ExxonMobil’s subsidiaries tax liabilities that are required to be paid over to the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA).
Before proceeding with today’s article, we would like to comment on the exchanges between Chartered Accountant and Attorney-at-law Christopher Ram, and the Attorney General in relation to the apparent overstatement of the balance on the Natural Resource Fund (NRF) account.
On 11 December 2023, the audited public accounts for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2022 along with the report of the Auditor General thereon were presented to the National Assembly.
During the period between the passing of the vote of no confidence in the previous Government on 21 December 2018 and the swearing in of the President Irfaan Ali on 2 August 2020, we had carried a total of 40 articles on the election-rated matters, including the outcomes of the various court cases that were filed.
After a much deserved two months’ break, we resume our column today by commencing a review of the Auditor General’s report on the audit of the public accounts of Guyana for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2022.
Last week, former Nigerian oil minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke, appeared in court in London charged with receiving bribes in the form of cash, luxury goods, flights on private jets and the use of high-end properties in Britain in return for awarding billions of dollars in oil contracts.
If we are to meet the 1.5-degree limit and protect ourselves from climate extremes, climate champions, particularly in the developing world, need solidarity.
In a recent interview with the Stabroek News, outgoing United States Ambassador Sarah-Ann Lynch stated the United States government does not involve itself in negotiations on behalf of its private sector and that it acts only as a facilitator to ensure companies know what investment options are available in foreign territories.
Last Monday, the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) issued a media release in which it stated that it has offered no objection to the IHS Markit report that identified US$214.4 million in pre-contract recoverable costs that the Government has reasonable grounds for disputing.
Last Monday, voters in Ecuador approved of two referendums to ban oil drilling in the Yasuni nature reserve in the Amazon Basin, and mining in the Choco Andino forest outside Quito, the capital.
In the Hawaii island of Maui, at least 93 persons have died and hundreds of persons reported missing, as a result of wildfires that began last Tuesday.
