THE recent comment by former Auditor General (AG) Anand Goolsarran regarding the qualifications of AG Deodat Sharma exposes his hypocrisy and opportunistic nature that has made him into a shameless puppet of the Alliance For Change(AFC). For those who are too young to remember, or who might have forgotten, allow me the opportunity to share a snippet of who is Mr Goolsarran. In 1994 when Goolsarran wanted to go abroad on extended leave to study for a Master’s degree, he had recommended to then President Cheddi Jagan that Gaindha Nauth Dwarka be appointed to act as Auditor General. Mr. Dwarka was

a very experienced and competent public sector auditor with a Bachelor's degree in Accountancy.  Dwarka was appropriately appointed to act while Mr. Goolsarran pursued his private interests abroad. Later, in 2002 when Mr. Goolsarran wanted another leave of absence to take up a lucrative position at the United Nations, he recommended to then President Bharrat Jagdeo, that Balraj Balram be appointed to act as Auditor General. Mr. Balram was so appointed and acted for several years while Mr. Goolsarran, again, pursued his private interests overseas. Like Mr. Dwarka, Mr. Balram was an experienced public sector auditor with a Bachelor's degree in accountancy. Neither Mr. Dwarka nor Mr. Balram were Chartered Accountants in possession of a practice certificate issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants, but Mr. Goolsarran had no hesitation in recommending that they be appointed to act in his absence and to certify the public accounts. This week Mr. Goolsarran suddenly come to the amazing realisation that Mr. Deodat Sharma, who has exactly the same experience and qualifications as Mr. Dwarka and Mr. Balram, is not adequately qualified to be Auditor General. It would appear that Mr. Goolsarran is attempting to discredit Mr. Sharma or is practising some serious double standards. What qualifications do Mr. Dwarka and Mr. Balram possess that differs from Mr. Sharma’s and therefore disqualifies him from being Auditor General? It would appear that Mr. Goolsarran is either a hypocrite to allow Mr. Dwarka and Mr. Balram to fill the post of Auditor General but to object to Mr. Sharma on the basis of his seemingly lacking qualifications. Or, Mr. Goolsarran is an opportunist to use Mr. Sharma’s qualifications as ammunition to attack the validity of the Auditor General for his own political gain. Indeed, Mr. Goolsarran himself has never at any time been the holder of a practice certificate issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants. By his own argument, this should have disqualified him from appointment as Auditor General! While he is at it, he should also confess to the people of Guyana that he is politically tainted and prejudiced. He is the AFC’s nominee to the Public Procurement Commission while his son, Michael Goolsarran was a lead candidate of the AFC in the 2006 general elections. In addition, Mr. Goolsarran has publicly acknowledged that Khemraj Ramjattan has been a close, personal friend of his for many years. It is therefore no wonder that he has remained silent on the blatant conflict of interest and ethical abuses that are being perpetrated by his party, the AFC. Mr. Goolsarran did not utter a single word of condemnation when AFC parliamentarian Cathy Hughes failed to disclose that she was being paid by Sithe Global, developer of the Amaila Hydro Project. Mr. Goolsarran also remained silent when AFC leader Nigel Hughes neglected to disclose his relationship with the jury foreman in the Lusignan massacre case. These are striking examples of Mr. Goolsarran's hypocrisy and double standards. A man of such questionable character and integrity would be seen in any other democracy as an embarrassment. I can only hope that Transparency International is taking note of the damage Mr. Goolsarran is inflicting on their organisation and Guyana.