Consolidated Fund $4.5B…Ashni Singh will face the music for money illegally spent
“For those who benefited and think they will get away, listen to me carefully when I say that the long arm of the law will catch you!” – Public Security Minister
By Kiana Wilburg
Public Security Minister Khemraj Ramjattan insists that no matter how long it takes, justice will be served when it comes to the illegal spending of $4.5B from the Consolidated Fund by former Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh.
When he served in the political opposition, Ramjattan had filed a complaint with the Guyana Police Force against Dr. Singh, over the unlawful spending of the $4.5B from the nation’s coffers. But the matter was one which was plagued by delays on the part of the Police Force – some two months after, and nothing on the case was done.
Ramjattan was later asked to prepare an extensive report showing how the Finance Minister could be charged. From the standpoint of criminal proceedings, the matter died a natural death.
It was then taken up by the former Opposition Leader, David Granger. He was represented in the High Court by Basil Williams who now serves as Minister of Legal Affairs and Attorney General. The former Chief Justice (ag) Ian Chang ruled that the $4.5B spending by Dr. Singh was unconstitutional.
Chang had told Kaieteur News that while he was criticized for not declaring sanctions, it should be noted that it is not his business to deliver disciplinary measures against the defaulters. He said that is the responsibility of the National Assembly. He had said, too, that the only option would be for the APNU+AFC to take the case up in a criminal proceeding.
Ramjattan says that he intends to go that route.
“Nothing came out of the case when I first carried it, but I have all intentions to check on the status of it and have it reopened and followed up on. The $4.5B spending remains, in my view, a case of illegal spending, and that is my legal opinion. The financial laws of this land were not meant to be broken.”
Public Security Minister, Khemraj Ramjattan
Former Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh
“I promise you, this will not become some other cold case. If the powers that be give good reason why he should not be charged, well then that is another case, but in my opinion he should be charged. Listen, if we don’t set an example, then this nonsense will continue. This financial lawlessness has to change. We saw under the PPP, the lawless spending of taxpayers’ monies in defiance of the laws. It just cannot go down as though it is okay or else we would be saying too that this is the norm, and our own will think they can do the same and everything will be as cool as cucumbers.”
The Public Security Minister said that the coalition Government intends to set standards so that others can know how necessary it is to abide by the laws.
He continued, “Ashni Singh had no right to do it, and no minster has the right to do so. I have also spoken with the police, including the Commissioner, and I told them that any APNU or AFC official found in any skullduggery then they should carry out their duties without fear or favour. The reason for this being done is because I was told that the PPP had a heavy influence in the police system, especially when it came to charging ministers. But that will not happen under my watch.”
Ramjattan said that he will not sit back and “allow these PPP culprits to get away”. In the same breath, he stressed that the citizenry should understand too that such cases take time to build.
He vowed once again that while he pleads for the nation’s patience, “not a single matter of financial corruption will become a cold case”.
The Public Security Minister also expressed confidence in the competence of his officers in investigating the financial cases. He said that even if assistance is needed, he is more than willing to seek various forms of help through Guyana’s CARICOM partners.
As for the abuse of the Contingencies Fund, this is another matter which has been highlighted every year in the reports of the nation’s Auditor General, Deodat Sharma. In his 2010 report, Sharma had pointed to the abuse of amounts totaling over $550M drawn from the Contingencies Fund and utilized to meet expenditures that did not meet the eligibility criteria as defined in the laws.
In his 2012 report, Sharma said that $95.661M in advances was illegally drawn from the Fund.
For 2013, he reported that $510M was withdrawn from the Contingencies Fund which did not meet the specified criteria. The 2014 report once again flagged the inappropriate use of the Fund under the previous administration, as $962M was withdrawn without meeting the specified criteria.
Minister Ramjattan promised that this is another matter that will be investigated. He stated emphatically, “Ashni Singh will face the music for illegal spending. For those who benefited and think they will get away, listen to me carefully when I say that the long arm of the law will catch you!”
