Jagdeo must say “what his cut was” on the CJIA contract – Harmon

General Secretary of the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), Joseph Harmon has lashed out at a paid political advertisement in yesterday’s edition of the Stabroek News.

APNU’s General Secretary, Joseph Harmon

The People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) advertisement focused on the Cheddi Jagan International Airport Expansion Project which is often criticized by the political opposition. It said that Harmon was one who enjoyed the perks of an all expense paid trip to Jamaica, facilitated by the project contractor, China Harbour Engineering Company. Harmon in a statement to the media acknowledged that it is true that he was invited on a trip to Jamaica by the company. He said however, that it only came after his criticisms of the contractor, China Harbour, on the poor execution of the contract for the expansion of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA). The APNU General Secretary said that he was not invited for a luxurious vacation but rather to visit several public infrastructural projects the contractor was undertaking in Jamaica. With the blessings of the Ministry of Public Works in Jamaica, Harmon said that he has visited and inspected the works done by China Harbour, on projects in the CARICOM country. The lawyer said that while the work done by China Harbour  in the Caribbean territory was found to be of good quality, he maintains his position, that the handling of the CJIA Expansion Project by the current administration was not transparent and that value for money is seriously in doubt. “The former President Bharrat Jagdeo on the other hand, who brought the company, China Harbour Inc. to Guyana must now say what financial consideration, if any, he and his advisor received out of the contract sum up front for the airport.  What was Jagdeo’s cut?  He is the architect of modern day corruption in Guyana,” Harmon categorically stated. The APNU Shadow Minister of Public Works asserted that it would appear that after his visit to Jamaica no further consideration was given by China Harbour Inc. to Jagdeo. He reminded that after interventions by Jagdeo, this very company was the one to subsequently acquire the bid for the construction of a section of the four -lane highway on the East Coast of Demerara. Based on his actions, Harmon emphasized that the former President “should never again be given the opportunity by the Guyanese people to serve in any public office which represents their interest.”

Quote " “The former President Bharrat Jagdeo on the other hand, who brought the company, China Harbour Inc. to Guyana must now say what financial consideration, if any, he and his advisor received out of the contract sum up front for the airport.  What was Jagdeo’s cut?  He is the architect of modern day corruption in Guyana,” Harmon categorically stated."unquote

What makes you think that he received a CUTBACK? Where is the Proof?

If you accuse the President of a crime and can't substanciate your allegations, then that is tantamount to treason.  Watch your mannerisms bukko...

Reading the statement and understanding same, you will find that Jagdoe brought China Harbour to Guyana.

The statement asks to say what financial consideration,if any, he and his advisor received out of the contract sum up front for the airport. 

It is a question asked and not an allegation leveled at Jagdoe.

That was his job.  to develop the country and that what he was doing.

Taking kick backs is very hard to prove.  That would have left aq paper trail.  Follow it, please... 

Do you have proof that Jagdeo received any compensation for this? No hearsay or assumption please. Need to see hardcopy proof.

A change is needed in the direction our country is going

Dear Editor, The elimination of Minister Ramsaran from the political landscape at this moment in time (even though he should have been sacked the same day he destroyed his political career), is not the end of this story because if the PPP wins , comrade Bheri will certainly be partially re-instated in a lower position. Check out Mr. Kellawan Lall, who, embarrassed himself and the PPP government, but was never penalized, became ambassador to Brazil, embarrassed us again, and is now home in Guyana, and on the PPP list of candidates – the post -Jagan era of the PPP is scandal-driven and devoid of discipline and devotion to the peoples’ welfare; when Jagan was in charge of the PPP, one never heard any scandals rocking that party’s core foundation. The point of the matter is that comrade Bheri was never up to the task of Minister of Health and everyone in the government and most health providers knew very well that Ramsaran was not capable of running such a complex ministry, even if his duties had been cut in half. The voters, women voters in particular, should wonder if Bheri Ramsaran’s boorish attitude is an isolated case in this government or whether, as the saying goes, “birds of a feather, flock together” and Bheri’s behaviour is accepted in the big shot hierarchy of the PPP. Furthermore, all voters should wonder about the calibre of persons who are given a ministry and do not perform well, with comrade Bheri as an example. Thus the most important questions: 1.What have Ministers Benn, Persaud, Nandlall, Manickchand and Sukhai done for us, the citizens of Guyana? Go and examine each of these ministers and their accomplishments and the voter would be shocked by what his taxpayer dollar has bought. 2. And as the saying goes – where’s the beef? Where are the benefits for us from their job performances? 3. Has Mr. Benn’s road and sea defence works bettered our lives; has Mr. Persaud’s policies protected our natural resources instead of creating havoc in our rich interior; has Mr. Nandlall’s policies bettered our legal framework where we have more easier access to find justice in our courts; has Ms. Manickchand’s tenure brought school buses for our children and hope for our university graduates; has Ms. Sukhai’s rule over the Amerindians relieved their poverty and protected their traditional lands ? The answer to those questions tells us who to vote for, if we can put aside our fears, our prejudices, our blind loyalties, and accept that a change is needed in the direction our country is going.

Cheddi (Joey) Jagan (Jr.)

If you need a better explanation that  is given, then channel your question to Harmon, he will give you a good schooling.

Jagdeo is back from the dead to haunt

Guyana – Roopnarine

As A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) coalition launched its

APNU candidate Dr. Rupert Roopnarine

manifesto on Thursday last, it used the opportunity to appeal to voters not to allow the incumbent People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) to return to Administrative office. Speakers who addressed those gathered at Stabroek Square, warned that a return of PPP to office means a return of former President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, “who has already put Guyana through a lot.” Setting the stage was APNU+AFC Presidential Candidate, David Granger who asked, “Do who want PPP to rule for the next five years?” The response was a resounding “No.” Granger proceeded to point out all the “good things” that the coalition has in store for Guyana including a salary hike for public servants. He then pointed out reasons why the PPP should not be given the chance to return to office. Granger said that the PPP has harboured corruption for too long “and that must change.”  The Presidential hopeful also told supporters and curious onlookers, that the PPP/C is a dictatorship regime “it is time for Guyana to move away from that as well…never again are you going to have a President who prorogues Parliament or dissolve it, you will not have a President who obeys the will of the legislative which is elected by the people.” Further, Granger criticized PPP rulers for indulgence in cronyism and other traits that does not coincide with good governance. However, what took the cake in getting the audience all riled up was APNU+AFC candidate Dr. Rupert

Bharrat Jagdeo

Roopnarine’s bid to remind them of the “hell” they endured under Dr. Jagdeo’s rule. Dr. Roopnarine said that Jagdeo took Guyana to a new form of hell. Alluding to Dr. Jagdeo’s absence from the political scene over the last three years, Roopnarine said that Jagdeo has risen from the dead with an agenda to “haunt Guyana.”  “But we had enough, so we must now tell Jagdeo that he will haunt us no more. We must resist.” The politician then called on those gathered to vote wisely and encourage their friends and family to do the same “so that Jagdeo will no longer be able to haunt us.” Further, Dr. Roopnarine said, “After independence, the British knew that the only way to keep us under their control was to divide us…the PPP learnt too well from the British.” With that being said, Roopnarine called on all right thinking Guyanese to send a strong message to the PPP to the effect that the time to divide and conquer is over “no longer will we allow ourselves to live divided.  The time for healing is here, the time for unity is here.”

Seems like Jagdoe will be history with his legacy being the US$200M Skeldon Sugar Factory.

Luncheon denies being Cabinet

Secretary after March – Court hears

Facing a court battle over the legality of him being a candidate for the ruling People’s Progressive

Dr. Roger Luncheon

Party/Civic (PPP/C) while being the Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Roger Luncheon has made public that he has since resigned from the latter post weeks ago. As the matter was called before Chief Justice (Ag), Ian Chang in the Georgetown High Court yesterday, Attorney-at-Law Adrian Smith, who represents Dr. Luncheon’s interest, stated that Dr. Luncheon had sent him a letter to say that he resigned from his office as Secretary to the Cabinet and Secretary to the Defence Board on March 18, last. Dr. Luncheon’s reported resignation is sure to bring questions on the gifting, by Cabinet, of multi-million dollar projects and drug contracts, recently, as well as the authorization of $2.6M for a PPP/C delegation to reach out to members of the Diaspora. Of note, the said date Dr. Luncheon claims he resigned is also that on which he signed the Fibre Optic Cable project over to Dax Contracting Services, headed by Faisal Mohamed. Just last week, Dr. Luncheon held a press conference at which he was introduced as Cabinet Secretary seeking to brief media operatives on discussions at Cabinet. Saphier Husain-Subedar, a lawyer known for taking on complex constitutional matters, last month moved

Attorney-at-Law, Saphier Husain-Subedar

to court over the issue. He had challenged the legality of the ruling party to hold meetings of the Cabinet of Ministers and making decisions even though Parliament has been dissolved. In a motion filed on April 24, last seeking to block Dr. Luncheon from contesting the upcoming May 11 General and Regional Elections, Husain-Subedar also named the Attorney General and the Guyana Elections Commission as the respondents. He asked the court to grant a declaration that Luncheon is a public officer holding/occupying a public office under Article 117 of the Constitution. He also wants a declaration that Luncheon’s name on the list of candidates for PPP/C as submitted to GECOM on April 7 last is void as he has failed to vacate his public office and should be disqualified from being a candidate. The lawyer, also Leader of the National Independent Party of Guyana which is contesting the elections, wants the court to also declare that all acts and things done by the Cabinet after the dissolution of Parliament on February 28, last and Nomination Day, on April 7, last are unconstitutional, void and have no pursuant to Article 117 of the Constitution of Guyana when read together with Article 106 of the Constitution of Guyana. He argued that the Cabinet ceased to exist on the dissolution of Parliament and that it is responsible to Parliament, pursuant to Article 106 of the Constitution of Guyana. Husain-Subedar wants the court to declare, also, that the acts and things done by Secretary to the Cabinet as from the date of dissolution of Parliament are inconsistent with democracy,  unconstitutional and in violation of various  Articles of the Constitution and sections of the Representation of the People’s Act  requiring free and fair elections. In his affidavit in support of the motion, the lawyer said that he is also a rice and cattle farmer and that his party’s list of candidates has been accepted by GECOM to contest the General Elections as published in the Kaieteur Newspaper on April 19, last. He said that Article 155 (6) (c) (1) and other articles of the Constitution point out that “anyone who holds or acting in or performing the functions” of any public office shall not be qualified for elections as a member of the National Assembly”. The lawyer said that Luncheon continued until the present time to hold Cabinet meetings with ulterior motives as Secretary of Cabinet and used said information as “propaganda” for the People’s Progressive Party through the Government Information Agency publication on various television stations in contravention of the Constitution. Husain-Subedar said he believes that Luncheon’s actions interfere with the fairness of the General Elections to be held next Monday.

The above is just like the APNU/AFC advertisement, a numbers of PPP/C lies  "PPP/C you lying"

Quote "Saphier Husain-Subedar, a lawyer known for taking on complex constitutional matters, last month moved

Attorney-at-Law, Saphier Husain-Subedar

to court over the issue. He had challenged the legality of the ruling party to hold meetings of the Cabinet of Ministers and making decisions even though Parliament has been dissolved. In a motion filed on April 24, last seeking to block Dr. Luncheon from contesting the upcoming May 11 General and Regional Elections, Husain-Subedar also named the Attorney General and the Guyana Elections Commission as the respondents. He asked the court to grant a declaration that Luncheon is a public officer holding/occupying a public office under Article 117 of the Constitution. He also wants a declaration that Luncheon’s name on the list of candidates for PPP/C as submitted to GECOM on April 7 last is void as he has failed to vacate his public office and should be disqualified from being a candidate."unquote

.

Former Magistrate says …Shooting was an execution attempt

…loses kidney, suffers spinal damage Former Magistrate, Fazil Azeez, believes the attack he suffered two Saturdays ago that resulted in him being shot, was definitely not a robbery attempt but a clear case of a “hit”.

Fazil Azeez

Azeez, who is recovering at home after more than a week in a private hospital following the shooting, told this newspaper that he is still puzzled why an attempt was made on his life. He is hoping that the police will provide some answers. On April 25, last, a lone gunman shot Azeez in the stomach after turning up at a construction site in the Eccles Housing Scheme, where Azeez is building his house, under the pretext of looking for a job. As Azeez slumped to the ground the gunman fled the scene making no attempt to grab the bag of money that the former Magistrate had in his hand. Azeez was picked up and rushed to the hospital where he was immediately admitted. Doctors were forced to remove one of his kidneys, a part of his spleen and he is also suffering from spinal injuries. When contacted by this newspaper yesterday, Azeez said that he has been at pains to point out to the police that the attack was not a robbery. He based his belief on the fact that he had a large amount of cash on him at the time and that the gunman made no attempt to even request the money, nor did he attempt to forcibly retrieve it. “This guy came to kill. I am still puzzled to determine what motivated him to do it,” Azeez told Kaieteur News. Workers at his construction site said that the gunman apparently abandoned his mission when he saw that they were closing in on him after Azeez fell to the ground. The incident occurred a few days after Azeez and a group of Muslims from West Coast Demerara paid a courtesy call on members of the opposition coalition, A Partnership for National Unity and the Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC). “The police have this theory of robbery…robbery from whom?” “I told them (police) not to pursue robbery (as a motive) that it will get them nowhere,” he added. Kaieteur News understands that the police have detained a man whom they believe is the shooter but they are awaiting the results of an identification parade. “The police did call me to tell me that they held the guy last Saturday. I sent my guy to see if he could identify him,” Azeez disclosed. It is believed that the suspect was picked up during a police raid on the East Bank Demerara over the past weekend. Divisional Commander Clifton Hicken would only confirm, yesterday, that the police had several persons in custody, without specifying if they were connected to the Azeez shooting. Azeez was a broadcaster at the Guyana Broadcasting Corporation before serving for several years as the General Manager. He then pursued studies in law and later became a Magistrate for a few years before returning to private practice.

 On April 25, last, a lone gunman shot Azeez in the stomach after turning up at a construction site in the Eccles Housing Scheme, where Azeez is building his house, under the pretext of looking for a job. As Azeez slumped to the ground the gunman fled the scene making no attempt to grab the bag of money that the former Magistrate had in his hand.

Gov’t. grants tax concessions in three packages: Gold, Silver and Bronze -APNU+AFC

A Partnership for National Unity plus Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) has been highlighting the “ad hoc” manner in which Government seems to be handing out tax concessions and tax holidays to foreign investors and local businessmen.

One of APNU+AFC’s financial advisor, Jaipaul Sharma

These criticisms were made before but are on the frontburner again given the recent deal struck between Government and a local contractor. That contract signed by Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Roger Luncheon and Faisal Mohamed of Dax Contracting Services sees the latter party receiving billions of dollars worth in concessions. Apart from the magnitude of the tax concessions granted, what is a serious matter of concern to the opposition is the fact that the contract says nothing about penalties to be effected if Dax does not follow through with the obligations of the arrangement to repair and maintain the Brazil to Guyana fibre optic cable. The contract lacks a termination clause and even a time for completion. The opposition has also highlighted the controversial Marriott Hotel which has been the recipient of extravagant tax holidays and tax breaks similar to Dax. Given the aforementioned “concession-trend”, the party has concluded that the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) grants concessions in three packages: Gold, Silver and Bronze. One of APNU+AFC’s financial advisors, Jaipaul Sharma, said, “The gold package is the first-class tax concessions that Government grants through the Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh to its family and best friends. “The silver package is for party members and the bronze package represents the tax concessions

Chartered Accountant, Chris Ram

that are given to its supporters.” Sharma, an accountant, said that he is disgusted at the manner in which Government discriminates when it comes to investments. He added, “The thing that is most despicable about this administration is that in no sector or no area can you find it operating with an ounce of decency or transparency and accountability. “With these enormous concessions they are granting to their friends, family and favourites, it is clear that Government wants to control the market. “They want to control the very bread on our table and who we get it from. And the sickening thing is that they enjoy watching the poor bleed just to make ends meet in this country. This PPP/C administration has a sick and twisted mindset for development. “Everything they do is to accelerate growth for themselves. So when Ashni Singh talks about Guyana’s economy growing, that is not true, it is their pockets that they are referring to.” Chartered Accountant, Christopher Ram, said that should the APNU+AFC assume office, it would be wise for it to look at a few things relating to tax concessions. Ram said that the discretion given to the Finance Minister to be the final check point for the approval of concessions needs to be reviewed. He said that the secretive manner in which tax concessions are treated need to be rejected immediately. The new government should deal with it in an open manner, forthwith. “The decisions to grant tax concessions should not be left to the Finance Minister alone. We should have some strict rules regarding concessions and tax holidays and those should be incorporated into the law. “The regulations need to provide for a strict review process and failure from certain companies to meet the relevant terms and conditions attached to the tax breaks should lead to automatic suspension and or revocation of the tax concessions granted to them by the Ministry of Finance,” Ram added. APNU’s financial point man, Carl Greenidge, had also taken a jab at the Dax deal and the PPP/C’s “carefree” granting of concessions to persons with close ties to it. Greenidge said that the “Dax Deal” is just another prime example of how the current administration strays far from what the tax laws stipulate. According to the Fiscal Incentives Institutional Framework for Investment, incentives are supposed to be granted in such a manner that they foster and promote a suitable investment climate for both local and foreign investors. The document says that Government’s commitment to investment is also set out in the Investment Act (No. 1 of 2004), which was crafted – “…to stimulate the socio economic development of Guyana, and to attract and facilitate investment.” The APNU Executive Member said that tax concessions are supposed to be granted in a transparent manner and one that promotes the adherence to international best practices regarding investment. He stressed that based on how government operates, as is evident in the case with its recent “Dax Deal”, favouritism plays out when giving out tax breaks and holidays to entrepreneurs. “It is obvious that such behaviour defeats the purpose for which tax concessions are to be granted. How Government grants these tax holidays obviously leads to the death of certain companies. It creates unfair competition,” the former Finance Minister added. The tax laws also state that Government should not discriminate against types of investments, investors (local or foreign), or types of ventures (company, joint venture, partnerships or sole trading) as long as the investment is sound and duly effected by a legally constituted body/person. The APNU Executive Member reminded of the billions of dollars worth in tax breaks, holidays and concessions granted to the Marriott Hotel. He then pointed to the details of the recent contract between the government and Dax Contracting Services. This contract is for an initial 25 years with an option to renew it for a further 15 years. This gives Dax a total of 40 years of cable rights. Government has also undertaken to provide Mohamed with the necessary support to receive and transmit data by way of the cable after granting the company an operating licence. And for free, Mohamed will be able to use the Government-owned fibre optic cables and structures including, roads, the poles, access to repeater stations and other things. Dax Contracting Services would also be provided with tax exemptions and incentives, including but not limited to tax holidays, remissions, tax waivers and duty free concessions on equipment, spares, tools and vehicles. The government insists that it will retain possession and use of most of the bandwidth, as agreed to between Dax and the government. As the owner of parts of the cable, Mohamed can invite and sign with any company or entity to use them to transmit and receive data and information from any part of the world in the same way that today’s telephone companies operate. To add insult to injury, the government has agreed to pay Dax for specific emergency maintenance. “This dying administration cannot deny that it is guilty of granting these concessions in an ad hoc fashion. It ignores the fair and equitable manner it is supposed to be distributed.” The criteria government uses to grant tax breaks is very clear and known to all by now. You have to be either:  a family member or relative, a close friend, known for lending support to the PPP/C and /or willing to stoop to any level to carry out their corrupt bidding,” Greenidge said.

“This dying administration cannot deny that it is guilty of granting these concessions in an ad hoc fashion. It ignores the fair and equitable manner it is supposed to be distributed.” The criteria government uses to grant tax breaks is very clear and known to all by now. You have to be either:  a family member or relative, a close friend, known for lending support to the PPP/C and /or willing to stoop to any level to carry out their corrupt bidding,” Greenidge said.

GUN CRIMES IS ON THE RAISE IN GUYANA: THE PPP/C SEEMS IMPOTENT TO CURB THIS SITUATION:

HOW LONG WILL GUYANESE LIVES UNDER FEAR?

GPHC misplaces dead babies in overcrowded morgue

The bodies of babies, untagged and stacked up in no particular order, is the situation that prevails at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC&rsquo morgue. This disturbing state of affairs was highlighted yesterday by

Roger Smith, father of a misplaced dead baby.

concerned father, Roger Smith. Smith said that he visited the public hospital yesterday to retrieve the body of his child but workers there were unable to honour his request. According to the man, while his eight-day old son was born at the West Demerara Regional Hospital, two days after his birth he was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital. The child, the man said, was diagnosed with jaundice. Jaundice is a common and usually harmless condition in new born babies. It causes yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes. And according to medical experts, untreated infant jaundice may lead to brain damage and even death. But Smith said, yesterday, that his baby was administered what he believe was antibiotics “or something like that” but based on his observation his child’s condition worsened. “He was given oxygen then he was placed on life support. Eventually he succumbed,” said Smith. He is suspicious about his child’s demise. “This thing with jaundice and the baby dying is kinda weird,” he intimated. The man said that while at the hospital morgue “I see like four to five drawers with babies, like 20 babies in a drawer…all just thrown in like that, like pieces of meat, no tags, no nothing and no proper records.” “They keep pulling out baby after baby looking for the (baby’s) sex and I see a whole set of babies wrapped up with no tag just tossed and thrown in,” added Smith.

Persons outside the GPHC’s morgue yesterday.

According to him, he waited for two and a half hours while morgue workers searched but failed to locate his dead child. “I don’t know what’s going on; these people are sick,” said Smith as he recalled how the morgue workers stopped searching for his son to attend to the parents of at least two other dead babies, but were also unable to locate those too. Other parents at the morgue yesterday were too emotional to share their concerns. “They are not finding babies right now is just adults (bodies) they finding,” observed Smith who added, that the explanation given by the morgue workers for their inability to locate the remains of the babies is that “the man who is supposed to know is not around.” Although a senior official at the hospital confirmed the state of affairs, the official was not willing to formally comment on the matter yesterday.

CJ quashes GGMC’s $3B loan to Housing Ministry…Says agreement null and void

The Chief Justice (ag.) Ian Chang in a written decision handed down yesterday afternoon, ruled that the decision

Chief Justice (ag) Ian Chang

by the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) to make a loan of three billion dollars from its funds and resources to the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) was “both irrational and ultra vires.” The action brought by WPA Member of Parliament  Desmond Trotman arose out of a joint statement by the GGMC and the CHPA of a $3B loan agreement. The deal was further exposed by Mr. Ranwell Jordan, a member of the CHPA. Trotman and Jordan filed the court action to challenge the purported approval of a loan of $3B by the GGMC to the CH&PA. The action against the two state controlled entities sought to quash the agreement for the loan which the plaintiffs argued were fictitious and unlawful. GGMC and the CHPA had signed a Loan Agreement following the submission of an “Investment Proposal by the CHPA last January. According to the Statement, the money was to be used for the development of the housing sector. GGMC had touted a five percent interest rate being offered by CH&PA, which according to the GGMC, was 3.2 percent more than what was currently being earned via the commercial banks and other investment options available to the Commission. The parties involved had articulated that in the event that CH&PA fails to repay the entire amount by the deadline, the Commission has the right to increase the interest rate by seven percent. The body said that the agreement was subject to the terms and conditions enshrined in the Loan Agreement and any additional guarantees required by the Commission. However, according to the actions filed last April, the plaintiffs are arguing that should the $3B Loan Agreement between the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) materialize, it would represent the crudest form of financial lawlessness. Based on the grounds listed in the action, the Chief Justice, (CJ) had instructed that GGMC and CH&PA must prove to the court why a Writ of Certiorari should not be granted to prevent GGMC from going ahead with its decision to lend the monies to the Housing authority. Chang had also instructed that the Housing Authority should justify why a Writ of Prohibition should not be dispensed to ensure that the mining commission is inhibited from making any further move on the loan on the premise that it is in breach of the law. The judge subsequently made absolute the Orders of Certiorari and Prohibition he granted based on an application by Trotman’s attorneys-at-law Christopher Ram and Brendon Glasford. In his decision yesterday, the Chief Justice ruled that the GGMC agreement is therefore “null and void”. He further noted that while the GGMC has the discretionary powers to make loans, the power does not extend for the purpose of the development of the housing sector. Ram, in a statement on the ruling, noted that the decision by the High Court not only vindicates Trotman and other commentators about the lawlessness involved in this tainted transaction but exposes the entire Cabinet and others in an elaborate scheme to siphon off money from the GGMC to GuySuCo using the CHPA as a front. He further stated that essentially it was conceded by the CHPA that it had no authority to enter directly in any Loan Agreement to borrow any money.

PPP/C CORRUPTIONS EXOSED

Ram, in a statement on the ruling, noted that the decision by the High Court not only vindicates Trotman and other commentators about the lawlessness involved in this tainted transaction but exposes the entire Cabinet and others in an elaborate scheme to siphon off money from the GGMC to GuySuCo using the CHPA as a front. He further stated that essentially it was conceded by the CHPA that it had no authority to enter directly in any Loan Agreement to borrow any money.

Finance Minister, AG ignored laws on

disclosing, auditing, tax concessions

– Chris Ram

Chartered Accountant, Christopher Ram has lashed out at the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ashni Singh and the country’s Auditor General, Deodat Sharma for having failed, over several years, to adhere to the country’s investment laws.

Chartered Accountant, Christopher Ram

Ram was referring specifically to the sections of that Act which call for transparency surrounding the monitoring and disclosure of tax concessions granted to foreign and local businesses annually. Ram emphasized that both financial officers have ignored their statutory duty and stressed that this needs to change in the new era of governance. The lawyer said that Sharma has been pressured on several occasions to report on the tax concessions as stipulated by the country’s tax laws, but he has continuously turned a blind eye to the issue. Guyana’s Investment Act, Section  38 (1) states that the Auditor General, or any suitably qualified person, designated by him for the purpose, shall annually carry out a procedural or process audit of incentives granted under section 2 of the Income Tax (In Aid of Industry) Act to an investor or an investment enterprise. It goes on to state that the report of the audit carried out , shall be laid in the National Assembly within six months after the end of each financial year. This has never been done . Further, Section 37 of the said Investment Act says that the Government shall publish in the Gazette, information regarding all fiscal incentives granted under section 2 of the Income Tax (In Aid of Industry ) Act. Given the failure of both Dr. Singh and Sharma to respect and obey the country’s laws, the Chartered Accountant said it becomes imperative for the whole matter of tax concessions to be part and parcel of the tax reform process with the aim of minimizing the cases for which exorbitant concessions are granted in an ad hoc fashion. He said that the rules need to be made tighter and applied across the board. In doing this, the lawyer asserted that the country would stand to benefit more from greater revenues. A Partnership for National Unity plus Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) has been over the last week , highlighting the “ad hoc” manner in which Government seems to be handing out tax concessions and tax holidays to foreign investors and local businessmen. These criticisms are on the front burner again given the recent deal struck between Government and a local contractor. That contract signed by Cabinet Secretary, Dr. Roger Luncheon and Faisal Mohamed of Dax Contracting Services sees the latter party receiving billions of dollars worth in concessions. The opposition has also highlighted the controversial Marriott Hotel which has been the recipient of extravagant tax holidays and tax breaks similar to Dax. Given the aforementioned “concession-trend”, the party has concluded that the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) grants concessions in three packages: Gold, Silver and Bronze. One of APNU+AFC’s financial advisors, Jaipaul Sharma, had said, “The gold package is the first-class tax concessions that Government grants through the Finance Minister, Dr. Ashni Singh to its family and best friends. “The silver package is for party members and the bronze package represents the tax concessions that are given to its supporters.” Sharma, an accountant, had also stated that he is disgusted at the manner in which Government discriminates when it comes to investments. Ram, in sharing his views on the matter had said that should the APNU+AFC assume office, it would be wise for it to look at a few things relating to tax concessions. Ram said that the discretion given to the Finance Minister to be the final check point for the approval of concessions needs to be reviewed. He had said that the secretive manner in which tax concessions are treated needs to be rejected immediately. The new government should deal with it in an open manner, forthwith. “The decisions to grant tax concessions should not be left to the Finance Minister alone. We should have some strict rules regarding concessions and tax holidays and those should be incorporated into the law. “The regulations need to provide for a strict review process and failure from certain companies to meet the relevant terms and conditions attached to the tax breaks should lead to automatic suspension and or revocation of the tax concessions granted to them by the Ministry of Finance,” Ram added. According to the Fiscal Incentives Institutional Framework for Investment, incentives are supposed to be granted in such a manner that they foster and promote a suitable investment climate for both local and foreign investors. The document says that Government’s commitment to investment is also set out in the Investment Act (No. 1 of 2004), which was crafted – “…to stimulate the socio economic development of Guyana, and to attract and facilitate investment.” APNU Executive Member, Carl Greenidge had argued that tax concessions are supposed to be granted in a transparent manner and one that promotes the adherence to international best practices regarding investment. He stressed that based on how government operates, as is evident in the case with its recent “Dax Deal”; favouritism plays out when giving out tax breaks and holidays to entrepreneurs. He said that this inevitably leads to unfair competition in the market place as well as the death of certain companies which did not receive similar tax breaks.

Many dead babies at GPHC’s morgue are unclaimed – Hospital

The startling number of dead babies stored at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation’s (GPHC) morgue has been linked to relatives failing to retrieve the remains or opting to do so at a late date.

Father of the dead baby Roger Smith

But according to Government Pathologist, Dr Nehaul Singh, while there is currently a high number of babies at the hospital; the situation is not one that developed overnight. “People are always claiming that they are coming for it (dead babies) and the hospital cannot bury the body if they (say) they are coming for it,” asserted Dr Singh. This state of affairs was also confirmed by Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Michael Khan, who reiterated that the hospital has for some time been dealing with the overcrowding situation, since some families have not been claiming remains. This publication first highlighted the overcrowding state of affairs at the GPHC’s morgue in its Thursday’s Edition. According to Roger Smith, a father who claimed that his dead baby was misplaced in the morgue, he visited the public hospital on Wednesday to retrieve the body of his child but workers there were unable to honour his request. But according to Dr Singh, although the morgue workers had stopped off to attend to a body that is involved in an ongoing police matter, they however eventually located the man’s child. According to Smith, his eight day- old -son was born at the West Demerara Regional Hospital but two days later he was transferred to the Georgetown Hospital. The child, the man informed, was diagnosed with jaundice. Smith related that his baby was administered what he believes was antibiotics “or something like that” but based on his observation his child’s condition got worse. “He was placed on oxygen then he was placed on life support, eventually he succumbed,” said Smith. He is suspicious about his child’s demise. “This thing with jaundice and the baby dying is kinda weird,” he said. The man related that while at the hospital’s morgue “I see like four to five drawers with babies, like 20 babies in a drawer…all just thrown in like that, like pieces of meat, no tags, no nothing, no records properly.” “They keep pulling out baby after baby looking for (the baby’s) sex and I see a whole set of babies wrapped up with no tag just tossed and thrown in,” added Smith. According to him, he waited for two and a half hours while morgue workers searched but failed to locate his dead child. “I don’t know what’s going on; these people are sick,” asserted Smith as he recalled how the morgue workers stopped off searching for his son to attend to the parents of at least two other dead babies but were also unable to locate those. Other parents at the morgue on Wednesday were too emotional to share their concerns. “They are not finding babies, right now is just adults (bodies) they finding,” observed Smith who added, that the explanation given by the morgue workers for their inability to locate the remains of the babies is that “the man who is supposed to know is not around.” However, the hospital in a statement issued yesterday expressed dissatisfaction with the article published by this newspaper and even labeled it as “deliberately misleading.” But the hospital’s statement reflected a clear lack of communication between the Public Relations Department, and that of the office of the CEO as this publication had made contact with Mr. Khan who acknowledged the state of affairs but was not in a position on Wednesday to give a formal response. Although the hospital’s Public Relations Department sought to emphasise that Smith’s baby was located, no effort was made to admit that it was after a few hours. The hospital also sought to label as “untrue” claims that dead babies in the morgue are untagged pointing out that “bodies are always tagged so deceased persons can be easily identified.” It was underscored too that “currently there are a number of dead babies at the hospital morgue; as families sometimes refuse to collect the bodies. In these instances, the hospital cannot bury the bodies until a certain amount of time has elapsed and it is determined that the families will not take on burial responsibilities. “This is since burying someone whose family turns up to uplift their body can put the hospital in serious hot water,” added the statement. The hospital has claimed too, that thus far for the year it has facilitated 17 burials.

MORE CORRUPTIONS

Why is Govt. so enamoured of BaiShanLin despite a catalogue of illegalities?

DEAR EDITOR, Stabroek News reported (‘Baishanlin says lack of funds delaying promised wood processing facility’, 02 May 2015) the protests of the Chinese transnational logger BaiShanLin (BSL), including the statement that Kaieteur News has carried ‘reports that are erroneous in nature, which fail to highlight, even in a single instance, where the company itself has broken any law or regulation’. This remarkable claim should be corrected because Bai Shan Lin has most certainly contravened laws, regulations, administrative procedures and approved policies of Guyana.  Questions of differential treatments by government agencies of enterprises in the forest sector, and persistent allegations of corruption extending from the apex of government, have been increasing in public discussion during the Ramotar administration. The following list of ten illegalities is not comprehensive, but should be enough to indicate that the senior management of BaiShanLin would have been prosecuted and penalised in jurisdictions where the rule of law was actually applied. Illegality 1: illegal renting of logging concessions in Berbice – Bai Shan Lin was registered in September 2006, with a 49 per cent share held by the transnational Chinese State-Owned Enterprise ‘Beijing-Uni-Construction Company’ (BUCC). CEO Chu WenZe stated that ‘the new company will initially be depending solely on smaller forestry producers for raw materials, but because of its intended scale of operations, it will be seeking forestry concessions to meet its increasing demand for these materials’ (Guyana Chronicle, 09 February 2007). Just a week later, the GFC’s consultation on a log export policy agreed that ‘only holders of Timber Sales Agreements, Wood Cutting Licences and State Forest Permissions will be allowed to export logs.  The logs must originate in their concessions’ (GFC post consultation summary, page 13, March 2007). BaiShanLin applied for permission to export logs but the then junior Minister for Forestry (Robert Persaud) ‘declined to grant such a request, and reminded the company of its commitment to become immediately engaged in value added production’ (Guyana Chronicle, 24 April 2007; Stabroek News, 21 and 30 April 2007). Moreover, according to an announcement by the Ministry of Agriculture on 06 May 2007, ‘a commitment was said to be given that the company would not engage in the export of round logs’ (Stabroek News, ‘Jailing forestry deal suspended – following breaches, non-compliance’, 07 May 2007). The WAICO Timber Sales Agreement (TSA 01/1999) was granted originally to Danny Ameerally.  BaiShanLin acquired operational control of WAICO and was thus able to comply with the log export policy which came into effect on the first day of 2009. There is no public domain information that either WAICO or BaiShanLin obtained prior Presidential consent for transfer of operational control. Under the then valid law, BaiShanLin was violating Forest Regulation 12 (1954) – ‘No transfer of any lease or timber sales agreement shall be made by any forest officer without the prior approval of the President where such lease or timber sales agreement grants exclusive rights to any person over an area estimated to exceed three thousand acres or is for an unexpired period exceeding three years’. Landlording is still illegal under Condition 13 of Timber Sales Agreements – ‘The grantee shall not transfer, sublet, mortgage or otherwise dispose of any interest arising under this agreement except in accordance with the Forest Regulations and any purported disposition made except in accordance with such regulations shall be null and void.’  The Forest Regulations 1954 were transposed to work under the Forests Act (cap. 67:01, 2009, section 85 (1)). The Board of Directors of the GFC approved a rentier agreement (‘joint venture&rsquo between BaiShanLin and WAICO in April 2009 but the Forest Regulations 1954 require prior Presidential approval, so the BaiShanLin – WAICO deal was illegal. Illegality 2, Customs fraud, false names – as the renting of WAICO was illegal, it follows that log exports by BSL using the name of WAICO were also illegal, because a false name is a fraud under Customs law (cap. 82:01, sections 157 and 158).  The pretence that small-loggers associations are exporting logs to flooring and furniture factories in China is also Customs fraud, because the loggers have been paid before the logs are loaded, so the name of the real owner/shipper should be on the export documents (Stabroek News, ‘Cocaine in logs shipment may have been destined for China’, 28 March 2011). Illegality 3, Customs fraud, false values – Customs law requires an exporter to provide an accurate description and valuation of the goods exported.  BaiShanLin is non-compliant because it declares a uniform FOB price for a shipping container from Guyana to China for particular timber species, without regard for the varying volumes of logs of that species inside the container. Illegality 4, health and safety violations – BaiShanLin took over the Coomacka sawmill of Ja Ling / Karlam South America Timbers, and secured an improvement grant of US$10 million from the European Union through LEAP, the Linden Economic Advance Project (LEAP); this amount was later reduced. During a visit to the sawmill by the Ambassador of the European Commission in August 2007, together with local journalists, violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (cap. 99:06, 1997/2009) were observed by the visitors and protested by the Guyanese workers (Stabroek News, ‘Safety violations seen at Coomacka timber works’, 15 August 2007; Guyana Chronicle, ’Deplorable wages and working conditions at Bai Shan Lin Linden operations. Agri Minister insists that the company has to comply with occupational health and safety standards’, 15 August 2007). The sawmill operated under Bai San Lin management for only a few months before being shut down as the company shifted into log exports.  The mill compound has subsequently been used for stuffing logs into containers for export shipment (Stabroek News, ‘Baishanlin still logging, no sign of value added’, 08 December 2014).  The container stuffing is apparently without routine oversight by the Customs and Trade Administration of the Guyana Revenue Authority Illegality 5, illegal renting of DTL logging concessions – Bai Shan Lin (BSL) took over operational control of Demerara Timbers Limited (DTL) (Stabroek News, ‘Demerara Timbers to be taken over by Bai Shan Lin’, 21 August 2007).  In spite of a painted sign at the DTL gate at Mabura Hill indicating BSL control, the GFC said that this was not a takeover, merely a transfer of shares and the giving of a technical assistance management contract to BSL.  However, this is legally a transfer of interest, and so a violation of condition 13 of the TSA licence.  Furthermore, in BSL’s presentation at the 2nd World Congress on Timber and Wood Products Trade at Taicang in China, November 2012, in slides 3 and 6 BSL claims control of 522,297 ha of DTL logging concessions; see http://www.redd-monitor.org/wp...s/2013/04/cwz-en.pdf.  Perhaps having denied repeatedly the BSL takeover of DTL in 2007, the GFC in 2013 and 2014 denied that BSL had such control but did not answer then, and has not answered since, the continued BSL claims. Illegality 6, illegal acquisition of logging rights – BSL claimed in November 2012 to operational control of 960,000 ha of logging concessions and exploratory permit areas in Guyana.  The GFC stated in its Press conference on 18 August 2015 that BSL’s forest holdings were only 627,072 ha (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHC1abnyKik and http://www.nre.gov.gy/PDF/Sett...%20James%20Singh.pdf).  The GFC has not explained the discrepancy; see also Stabroek News, ‘GFC contradicts Minister’s report on Bai Shan Lin’s operations’, 24 August 2014. My estimation of BSL’s holdings totals over 1.4 million hectares (tabulated in Stabroek News, ‘Would the GFC place documents related to joint venture with Bai Shan Lin in the public domain’, 17 January 2015).  The lack of point-by-point response from the GFC suggests collusion between BSL and the GFC in some improper allocation of logging rights, over a long period.  This is not to suggest, by any means, that all BSL concessions were acquired illegally. Illegality 7, non-payment for purchased logs – the log purchases by BSL have been spread over many areas of the hinterland of Guyana.  Purchases are rarely supported by written contracts.  Payments for the logs are usually in cash at the roadside or log market.  In spite of a reputation for being cash-rich, BSL has been negligent in paying independent loggers.  Oral agreements to buy are, however, contracts. Amerindians complained about BSL’s non-payment for delivered logs (Kaieteur News, ‘Bai Shan Lin owes Amerindians “plenty, plenty money”’, 17 August 2014).  Pressed by the newspaper reports, BSL arranged hasty payments of wads of cash at Kwebanna  (Kaieteur News, ‘Under pressure BaiShanLin pays monies owed to Amerindians – dead silence on duty free concessions granted to company’, 02 September 2014) but it remains unclear if there are written accounting records of who was paid how much for what. Illegality 8, non-payment or very delayed payments of NIS and PAYE –the Bai Shan Lin group of companies has been derelict in payments of national insurance and tax for its workers for long periods (Kaieteur News, ‘GPSU warns foreign investors to obey laws’, 12 September 2014). Illegality 9, illegal extraction of laterite gravel, road building – besides taking logs without payment, BaiShanLin has excavated and carried away without authorisation an estimated 47,000 m3 of laterite gravel from Moblissa for road building, foundations for buildings at Conception and for a construction park, vehicle storage and pontoon-building site at Coverden. The BSL vehicles have repeatedly damaged roads in Region 10 and polluted water sources.  The Regional Democratic Council, the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission and the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission have not been able to exert effective authority over BSL activities. Extraction of laterite gravel requires a quarry licence and removal permits (State Lands Regulations (under the State Lands Act, cap. 62:01, 1903/1997), Regulations 75-79 in Part X – Licences for quarrying stone, gravel, kaolin and other clays; Mining Act, cap. 65:01, 1989, Part X – quarry licence, sections 89-96).  In addition, section 11 of the Environmental Protection Act (cap. 20:05, 1996) requires an environmental impact assessment, environmental impact statement and an environmental permit for road construction; item 3 in Schedule 4 of the Act. A laterite pit identified by the Region 10 RDC at Three Miles, Mabura, as source for repairing the roads damaged by BSL near the large Moblissa pit was then further abused by BSL, allegedly removing 144 truckloads but using fewer than 10 to fix the damaged Moblissa road (Kaieteur News, ‘Bai Shan Lin refuses to sign GGMC “cease order”’, 17 April 2013; Stabroek News, ‘Bai Shan Lin banned from laterite pit’, 08 July 2014; Kaieteur News, ‘Bai Shan Lin exploiting Region 10…unable to say how much land under its control – Solomon’, 08 August 2014; Stabroek News, ‘Baishalin building huge water craft at Moblissa – no sign yet of processing facilities’, 08 September 2014; and several more Press articles). Illegality 10, violation of TSA conditions – the general terms and conditions for Timber Sales Agreements (TSAs) are now given in Annex V of the third edition of the GFC Code of Practice for Forest Operations for Timber Sales Agreements and Wood Cutting Licences (July 2014).  Bai Shan Lin has operational control of several such TSAs.  Item 6 of these terms and conditions states that ‘The concessionaire shall work the area to the satisfaction of the Commissioner in accordance with the terms of the concession agreement and only in accordance with the Forest Management plan, as approved by the Commissioner …’ (page 194).  Presumably Bai Shan Lin needs to comply with all relevant laws, regulations, procedures and approved national policies in order to ‘satisfy’ the Commissioner of the GFC.  The same Code of Practice states that ‘Forest utilization should respond to: ·  national legal and regulatory obligations; · the ecological constraints of sustainable ecosystem management, notably the optimal protection and conservation of diversity of flora and fauna;’ etc. (section 2.1, page 13). The Code of Practice mentions the GFC’s ’deliberate attempt to ensure that merchantable trees remain in the stand after harvesting operations, and that the rate of harvesting does not exceed the growth rate of commercial species’ (section 2.3.6 on page 22) and ‘The Annual Allowable Cut is constrained by the quantity that can be removed per hectare in response to productive capacity of the resource (specifically the rate of volume increment of the commercial species)’ (page 23).  Potential crop trees (which should form the harvest for the next felling cycle) and seed (mother) trees are defined on section 4.4 page 51 and their protection is mentioned several times in the Code. Given such rules, it is not clear how Bai Shan Lin can focus felling in the logging concessions which it controls on the very small number of timber species which it exports as logs and squares to China.  BSL’s purchases from other concession holders and contractors, also focused on this limited range of timbers, encourage rule-breaking by those operators. Investment promises not implemented – in addition to the outright illegalities, Bai Shan Lin has repeatedly given assurances about the breadth and depth of its intended investments in Guyana, in terms of monetary added-value and the scale of local employment.  Most of these assurances have not been implemented, although BSL has benefitted from exemptions from import duty on equipment, vehicles and fuel, and other investment incentives negotiated at Cabinet level or higher but not through GO-Invest.  Instead of value-added processing as promised, the company has focused on highly selective logging of timbers preferred for traditional furniture and flooring in China, on gold mining and on luxury real estate development. In its early years in Guyana, BSL indicated its parent company BUCC as the source of external finance, and mentioned approximately US$ 100 million (Stabroek News, ‘New Chinese forest company pledges to invest US$100M’, 09 February 2007).  Soon afterwards, BSL secured a grant from the Linden Economic Advancement Programme (LEAP) which was administering a project funded by the European Commission for Linden’s diversification out of bauxite (Stabroek News, ‘Mixed reviews for LEAP – next two years seen as crucial for Linden scheme’, 18 June2007).  BSL was to have converted the former Ja Ling sawmill at Coomacka to produce flooring strips for export to China, where BUCC has a flooring factoring in or near Beijing. But this conversion never took place, and it is not clear that BSL repaid the grant. There was a rumour from China in mid-May 2012 that credit to BSL was limited or had been withdrawn, but by November 2012 the Guyanese Ambassador to China witnessed the signing of BSL’s loan from the China Development Bank.  BSL’s large-scale proposals were described to the Chinese investors at the Taicang exhibition mentioned above, and outlined to the Government of Guyana in January 2013 (Kaieteur News, ‘Chinese logging firm signals interest in establishing wood products park’, 10 January 2013).  Ten days later, the investment was quantified as the first phase of a projected total of US$ 500 million (Stabroek News, ‘Bai Shan Lin sets sights on operating 183,740 hectares of forest here’, 20 January 2013).  The US$ 100 million intended investment was mentioned again in mid-2013 (Stabroek News, ‘Bai Shan Lin holds 960,000 hectares of forest’, 05 May 2013; Stabroek News, ‘Forestry commission says large amount of equipment already here for Bai Shan Lin US$100M investment’, 08 May 2013).  The GFC stated that BSL had US$ 60 million in secure finance (Kaieteur News, ‘Questions abound over mega investments by Bai Shan Lin…Govt promoting company without full disclosure’, 28 May 2013). During the three months of Press exposure in July-September 2014 of the massive selective logging by Bai Shan Lin and its suppliers for export to Asia, the Chinese Ambassador to Guyana noted that BSL ‘took big loans to initiate the investment’ (Stabroek News, ‘Baishanlin still in start-up phase, took big loans’, 05 September 2014). Now again (see http://www.globaltimber.org.uk/guyana.htm) BSL is in trouble with its creditors.  BSL is attributing loss of confidence of its creditors to the publications in the independent Press in July-September 2014, without mentioning the casino preferences of BSL senior management.  Yet BSL continues to enjoy tax and other investment benefits in Guyana which cannot be accessed by the Guyanese-owned enterprises which do invest locally in value-added transformation of forest products, do provide local employment and do train their Guyanese workers.  Given the catalogue of illegalities and broken promises almost since BSL arrived in Guyana, why is the Government so enamoured of this group of companies and so reluctant to provide equivalent incentives to its own citizens? Janette Bulkan and John Palmer

in a few days we will see.

We'll all see what we all know - the PPP has run its corrupt course. The Guyanese people will be liberated from all the insulting modes of governance that have kept it from being respected around the Caribbean and the world and from progressing in its economy. All you have is laundered money and remittances fueling a construction boom. That's it. Guyana is still stuck in a 1970s dependency primary-producing economy subject to he vicissitudes of the world markets and pricing.

Correction.  1920s dependenct model.  By the 70s Jamaica and Trinidad and even Barbados were moving towards value added.

When our parents were in school they were taught that the main products of British Guiana were sugar, bauxite, rice, gold and timber.

Guyanese kids are now taught that the main products are gold, rice, sugar, bauxite and timber.

Same products.  Only different order.

Two days more to go before Elections dawns on Guyanese, and so far I do not see any reasonable indication/s that the PPP/C will muster over 50 percent of the votes.

If I were to follow a trend over the years, what do I find?

In 1997 the PPP/C got 220,667 Votes

In 2001 the PPP/C got 210,013 Votes

In 2005 the PPP/C got 182,156 Votes

In 2011 the PPP/C got 166,340 Votes

Following the trends from above, there is no viable reason to assume that the PPP/C will muster more votes in May 11/2015.

Other reasonable phenomena to take into consideration, for the past five years or so, the cry of the Guyanese Population has never been so hot as to the thieving and Corruptions within the PPP/C.

Because of the above, sometimes I am at a loss to figure why would the Corrupt and thieving PPP/C now at this time where their Popularity has dwindled, muster more votes.

Another reason of importance, these pricks, even the President, Donald Duck and his PPP/C Ministers has been making promises, to left right and centre, and when time comes to fulfill same, they would not.

Finally come May 11th 2015, we all would know what to expect, unless of course the PPP/C would put all their goons (those PNC thugs) that they employs to work........and make this election a mirror to Burnham's type of Election.

Let the PPP/C knows that "Dem ah watch you"

53% for the APNU/AFC

And for the PPP/C a dismal 45-46%

Contracts and corruption

The right of a government to award contracts has never been questioned. As a matter of fact, contracts are integral to national development. But there are means of awarding contracts. The law states which contracts should go to the Central Tender Board, which would be awarded by the Regional Administration and which by the Neighbourhood Democratic Council. In recent times where the authorities might favour a particular contractor there was what is known as contract splitting, something that prevents the contract from being awarded by the Central Tender Board. This practice was also adopted by the other bodies in the local democratic organs but there were complaints. Needless to say, no one was ever punished for the blatant disregard of the established law but the taxpayers often suffered. They were presented with substandard work despite some of the contracts containing penalty clauses. Poorly constructed roads, substandard bridges and even faulty kokers were the result of the selected tenders. The Parliamentary opposition could only complain. When it remained in the minority it could only hope that the media would highlight the irregularities. Soon, the contractors, safe in the knowledge that the most they had to worry about was the media shame, continued their merry way. Some contractors openly boasted that they had friends in the government and therefore had no need to worry about sanctions. But the government has actually taken steps to recover monies from shoddy contractors, especially on the major projects such as the Amaila Falls Road Project. The government moved to terminate the contract of the original contractor, Makeshwar ‘Fip’ Motilall with alacrity and actually moved to the courts to collect outstanding monies. Other contractors were also taken to court, most recently, the Indian contractor, Surendra Engineering. The truth is that the government will recover none of the money largely because it will not actively pursue the legal action. Such is the state of affairs with contracts that people on the outside have concluded that the award of contracts is seen as a family business. People closely associated with the government, in recent times, have won most of the contracts. It is this that has now led to widespread accusations of nepotism and charges of corruption against the government which remains unfazed, so unfazed that it recently awarded a contract that now has the entire country wondering whether the government was ever keen to combat corruption in its midst. What is even more shocking is the fact that there were actually attempts to defend the contract. And in defence, the government moved to abuse all those who dared to question the award. Even in the face of the stated facts the government’s chief spokesman held that there was nothing untoward about the award. He said that the contractor was undertaking the rehabilitation of the fibre optic cable form Brazil for free. A simple analysis revealed that the rehabilitation is rather costly.  The government may not have to resort to the public treasury for every aspect, but the tax and duty free concessions over 40 years would represent a significant outflow of funds from the treasury. The aware of sections of the cable to the contractor for use as he sees fit is also going to provide him with substantial revenue, no different from the money being earned by the telecommunication giants in the country. What is surprising is that this contract was not put to public tender. The Cabinet Secretary said that the government chose not to look the gift horse in the mouth when the ‘free’ offer came up. Surely a government should not be playing so loose with the taxpayers’ money. It now turns out that the cost of maintaining the cable will far outweigh the cost of bringing the cable to Guyana from Brazil. Why would the government award such a contract? The view is that it is in the habit of rewarding party supporters and members, something that even other party members condemn and have publicly criticized. And to think that the government is heading into elections with this record, and this most recent award that stinks to high heavens.

PPP/C cannot escape the inevitable fall from power – Granger

After traveling the length and breadth of the country on a vigorous election campaign, Presidential Candidate

APNU+AFC Presidential Candidate, David Granger

of A Partnership for National Unity plus Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC), David Granger, is convinced that there is an enormous movement in favour of the coalition. At a press conference held at the coalition’s headquarters in Queenstown yesterday, Granger told members of the media that he is absolutely confident that his party will win a majority in the upcoming election. The Presidential hopeful said that come May 11, the electorate will have an opportunity to choose between the APNU+AFC coalition’s commitment to establish a ‘government of national unity’ or the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic’s (PPP/C) determination to continue its ‘winner-takes-all’ approach. Granger said, too, that the PPP/C is sliding towards a fall from power in the 2015 general and regional elections. He stated that the government has been experiencing a decline in its support base for several years. He then pointed to the PPP/C’s electoral performance to justify his conclusion. “The PPP claimed 220,667 votes in the controversial 1997 general and regional elections. Its tally fell to 210,013 in 2001. It then fell to 182,156 in 2006. It finally crashed to 166,340 in 2011 when it lost its majority in the National Assembly to APNU and the AFC. The decline started in August 1999 when Bharrat Jagdeo replaced Janet Jagan. “Jagdeo, despite his boastful behaviour and swaggering style, was the author of the PPP’s problems, losing over 54,000 votes from Janet Jagan’s assumed tally in 1997. His tenure ended in 2011 after the failure of ineffective manoeuvres to seek a new term of office,” The Opposition leader expressed. Granger said, too, that the PPP/C during the “Jagdeo era” persistently failed to address the people’s basic needs for public services and embarked instead on a series of expensive but misconceived mega-projects such as the Fibre Optic Cable Project, the Specialty Surgical Hospital and the Amaila Falls Hydro-power Project road. The politician recalled that the government tried to subordinate the National Assembly to the Executive branch of government on several occasions. He said that it also impaired regulatory and law-enforcement agencies  such as the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Guyana Energy Agency by depriving them of adequate assets, equipment and finance to such an extent as to diminish their capability to function effectively. He contended that the PPP even cultivated the state-owned communications media – the Government Information Agency (GINA), Guyana National Newspapers Limited (publishers of the Guyana Chronicle) and the National Communications Network (NCN) – as Party organs to systematically exclude dissenting opinions. But in focusing on stifling the opposition and the nation as a whole, Granger said that the party failed to address the country’s most pressing problem, the public security crisis. He said that government has never accepted its responsibility for the high rate of armed robberies, the murderous maritime piracy, the rampant gun-running and contraband smuggling and other violent crimes that rage along the coastland. “The entire nation is alarmed at the rising homicide rate. There have been more than 2,100 murders over the past 15 years during the two deadly Jagdeo and Ramotar presidencies. Guyana’s murder rate is three times higher than that of the United States. The PPP failed to advance local democracy by destroying neighbourhood democratic councils and delaying local government elections. It failed to maintain educational standards which are now characterized by poor performance from the level of primary schools to the university,” Granger added. Because of its poor governance and negligence, the APNU+AFC Presidential Candidate said that the PPP/C is now facing a ‘tsunami’ of troubles which grows more threatening by the day. As such, Granger opined that government “cannot escape the inevitable fall from power” when general and regional elections are held on May 11. His Shadow Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Rupert Roopnaraine asserted that observer groups asked the coalition if it is prepared to deal with the possibility of the results being in favour of the PPP/C. The politician said that it was related to the missions that once there is no violation of the electoral process, laws and practices, then the APNU+AFC would find no difficulty in accepting results of the elections. He said that this sentiment was also communicated to its supporters. “We have, at every rally and public meeting, stressed to people that we want a peaceful election and post-election period, but there is such a surge of hope…and if they individually detect that there are deliberate attempts to frustrate the process, then I fear they will be difficult to restrain… but we will do our best to try to calm the people,” the APNU Executive expressed.

Govt shovels US$12.8M drug contract to New GPC

…violates the Constitution, exposes Dr. Luncheon as a liar

The Cabinet of Government Ministers last month blessed contracts for the procurement of drugs worth

Dr. Ranjisinghi (Bobby) Ramroop

some US$12.8 million (G$2,677,864,510). The contracts were awarded to New GPC, a company controlled by Dr. Ranjisinghi (Bobby) Ramroop, a friend with business connections to former President Bharrat Jagdeo. Three Cabinet Minutes have been leaked and reproduced in the electronic media. The Minutes of the Cabinet meeting approving the most expensive contract for $6,730,526 dated April 23, 2015 was signed by Dr. Roger Luncheon in his capacity as Secretary to the Cabinet and Head of the Presidential Secretariat. Drug purchases for the past several years have been done on the sole sourcing principle, rather than the more competitive tender process required under the Procurement Commission Act. It is estimated that over the past seven years more than US$200 million were spent on drug procurement, with the lion’s share going to New GPC. The transactions raised several questions ranging from the authority of the Cabinet to create contracts for the payment of such large sums, to whether Dr. Luncheon has been guilty of perjury in connection with a statement he gave to the Court on Wednesday, through an Attorney-at-Law. Under the Constitution of Guyana and the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act, during the first four months of any year and before the passing of any budget, the Government is only authorised to

Dr. Roger Luncheon

spend in each month, one-twelfth of the amount spent in the preceding year. The 2014 Budget shows expenditure of $5,138,857,000 which means that for the four months, the amount which could lawfully be spent was about $1.3 billion. This would mean that in one fortnight in April alone, the Government spent twice as much as it was allowed to spend in four months. One person familiar with Government accounting noted that every month the Government has been purchasing drugs, so that the unlawful spending is considerably more than the April purchases. The person noted that while the Cabinet, individual Ministers, the Finance Secretary and the Budget Director are all circulated with a copy of the Cabinet Minutes, the responsibility for the Consolidated Fund vests in the Finance Minister, and it is he who would have to face the consequences for the violation. Observers have been asking almost frustratingly, and without any answer, for the reason why senior, professional persons would go out of their lawful duties to participate in the lawless transactions in which the only beneficiary is Dr. Ramroop. The Minutes also expose Dr. Roger Luncheon as having caused to be tendered, through Mr. Adrian Smith, Attorney-at-Law in the Attorney General Chambers, information which he must have known to have been false. Mr. Smith informed the Court on May 6, 2015 that he was in possession of a letter from Dr. Roger Luncheon stating that he, Luncheon, had resigned from his office as Secretary to the Cabinet and Secretary to the Defence Board on March 18, 2015. Cabinet Paper (2015) 4.3.J clearly bears the royal signature of Dr. Luncheon, and no doubt he will have to explain the presence of his signature on the Minutes. Otherwise he could be brought up for perjury.

Whether October 13, 2013, the beginning of this thread, or Monday May 11, 2015, the date of the elections, PPP/C will win the elections with more than 52% of the votes.

The life of this thread will end on Monday, May 11th.

Smart fella, there is no desire to continue this after May 11th.

Anyone who is thinking about writing a thesis will have enough articles here to show how a working class party, can morph into one of the most corrupt and thieving government in the world.  

No one knows who will win the elections, but if we were to go by the trend of previous years re:

In 1997 the PPP/C got 220,667 Votes

In 2001 the PPP/C got 210,013 Votes

In 2005 the PPP/C got 182,156 Votes

In 2011 the PPP/C got 166,340 Votes

Those figures are staring at us, telling us something.

Immaterial, as usual.

On Tuesday morning when Jagdeo is screaming that the election was rigged with the PPP only getting 48%, and with Carter telling to stop behaving like an infant whose toy was taken away.........that will be immaterial and irrelevant too.

When facts are staring down at you, and yelling trying to educate you, then you become ungrateful because of the truthfulness of those figures. Far gone I am afraid, but for me it is immaterial. Whether you have your marbles or lost them. 

Continued irrelevance.

One point in case; while the numbers obtained are shown, they must be compared to the total votes cast for each election period.

Immaterial, do your homework and present them  then we will see if those marbles are still there.

V-DAY IS HERE!  VOTE TOMORROW TO REBUILD THE GUYANA YOU DESERVE

Tomorrow when you cast your ballot for the APNU+AFC Coalition, you –Guyanese citizen, business owner, academic or professional – will be starting the long overdue process to take back what is YOURS.  This is the opportunity you have been waiting for to take back your right to decide what works best for you, your family, your community. You have an inalienable right to choose the people who will form your Neighbourhood and Regional Councils and who will manage the affairs of your communities.  You have the right to work at your chosen trade or profession without being pushed aside and trampled upon at every turn by others who enjoy unbelievable concessions from the PPP/C. You have the right to receive similar concessions so you could operate in a fair, even business environment, and with a system that does not require you to pay excessive charges to process documents or wait for hours to receive a public service. You have the right to be properly educated from nursery to university in an education system that provides all that is necessary to ensure that you graduate with a high degree of knowledge to make you employable and fully functional in your own homeland. You have the right to receive sufficient pension after you have given so many years of service to your country, and medical financial aid from the National Insurance Scheme (NIS) when you need it.  The NIS which you contribute to every month was created to help you in difficult circumstances.  It certainly was not envisaged that the Scheme would run bankrupt because billions of YOUR dollars were taken away from it and given to the Berbice Bridge Company and other government projects.  The Coalition government will reclaim your money through any legitimate means. You have the constitutional right to work and earn decent wages in your country, not to stand helplessly aside while projects are farmed out to foreign investors who have been allowed to import the labour they need.  That the PPP/C government agreed to this, perhaps even demanded it, for the construction of the Marriott-branded Hotel and the GPL expansion project, is tantamount to discrediting the value of Guyanese people. Despite all the tall buildings in the city, the new school buildings (no furniture or teaching aids), despite an improved service from the national electricity grid, and despite the availability of imported products, the average citizen still lives in poverty with little hope for betterment.  The 16% value added tax on every product and service has put them out of reach of many of us. We have faced open discrimination daily and the so-called PPP/C administration had no problem trampling on our rights to live, to grow and prosper.  Crime has become an industry in Guyana, and our citizens lose their lives, their children, their property, peace of mind as well as their willingness to remain in the country of their birth.  But the PPP/C does not care, so long as their pockets are full. NO MORE!  Guyana has had enough of this greedy ‘administration’.  It is time for Guyanese to finally reap the benefits of OUR OWN resources. Our LAND, gold, diamonds, forests and everything they contain, and our AIRWAVES do not belong to the PPP/C to give away to friends, family and foreign companies.  THEY BELONG TO US! It was our tax dollars that paid for that fibre-optic cable from Brazil which the government has just given away for free on very questionable terms and conditions.  At the beginning they touted this project as a means of opening up (liberalizing) the Telecommunication Sector.  Later we were told that the cable was to enhance government’s activities and programmes throughout Guyana’s 83,000 square miles (e-governance) while providing connectivity to people living in inland areas and the hinterland who benefitted from the deceptive One-Laptop-Per-Family giveaway. Five years on, today, the Government is singing a different tune with discordant notes as they try to justify this latest kick in our collective teeth, this new contract with a saw miller and civil works contractor who clearly does not understand why he was hand-picked for this dirty ‘deal’.  He does not understand the terms of the contract he signed. Fellow Citizens, we are now standing on a threshold.  At the backside are rampant thievery, pettiness, spite and squandering of our resources.  Ahead of us lies a green Guyana, full of prospects for every Guyanese man, woman and child to live as equals in a productive society. This objective is the main reason why the seven parties that make up the Coalition decided to merge our many resources to finally unify Guyana and all that is in it.  Just like you, we want to see our natural resources and the genuine drive of our people work for the benefit of this nation. Unlike the PPP/C, we will not break down and discard the roads and bridges that have been built.   The coalition is not against the development of Hydro Power.  We firmly believe that we have a responsibility to this nation to utilize the water resources that Guyana is blessed with and join the rest of world in providing renewable energy sources at a cost that is much cheaper than US$800 Million.  The Coalition prefers to see the feasibility study on the Amaila Falls with an assessment of the consequences for a hydro station in the months when the falls runs dry.  We would also commission a study on possibilities for hydro-powered stations in other sections of the Potaro Basin and Mazaruni Rivers. The Coalition is not at all against a new international airport, despite what you’ve been told.  We objected to the plan to construct the new airport with only Chinese labour and at unbelievable prices e.g. G$424,000 for one toilet set.   Highly qualified Civil Engineers have estimated a modern airport building at approximately US$40 Million which is US$110 Million LESS than the PPP intended to spend.   The Coalition will not approve the construction of a national edifice without the input of Guyanese skills and products, especially not at this time when the unemployment rate is so high. In the same vein, we will undertake an intensive audit to determine why the construction of the one-storeyed No. 51 Village Magistrate’s Courthouse cost the Guyanese tax payer G$46 Million.  In any estimation, this building including furniture, plumbing and electrical facilities should not have cost more than G$12 Million.  The same goes for the Marriott-branded hotel that the Government claimed cost US$60 Million. Citizens, do not be fooled by the PPP/C’s rank propaganda.  They have been making the same election time promises to you for 20 years and you could count the number of those promises that came to life and made your lives better. THE TIME IS NOW TO CHANGE YOUR FORTUNE.  The APNU+AFC Coalition will make it happen!

East Bank lands gobbled up by

‘private developers’

– two Chinese companies, Ramroop benefit

There are shocking details emerging of Government’s handling and distribution of lands on East Bank Demerara.

New GPC’s Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop

A significant portion of the front part of the former cane fields, stretching from Eccles to Diamond, has ended up mainly in the hands of close friends of the national leaders and party officials. The situation has now left Government scrambling to find lands for almost 10,000 applicants for house lots that are reportedly pending. Some persons have been waiting for years on a positive response from the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA). Government has been saying that few areas remain available on the East Bank Demerara for development. New lands are being opened up on the Soesdyke/Linden highway and attempts are being made to purchase cane field between Eccles and Ogle, on East Coast Demerara. However, it is unclear how much of those cane field lands will be earmarked for actual house lots for citizens and how much for private developers. According to documents in possession of this newspaper, 11 private developers have been given hundreds of acres of lands stretching from behind Peter’s Hall to Providence as early as 2011. Two more were allowed

Housing Minister, Irfaan Ali

swaths of land in the Diamond and Golden Grove areas. Still another 11companies, as of July last year, were set to receive lands from CH&PA for especially areas in the Little Diamond and Great Diamond areas. It is unclear what has been allocated. One company, Luxury Reality Inc., which has lands in Providence, has listed as its Director/Secretary, Roopnarine Ramcharitar, a right hand man for Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop. Ramroop is the owner of New GPC, a company that was investigated by the Opposition for a number of questionable deals. He is the best friend of former President Bharrat Jagdeo. Chinese Two other companies that received lands were Hi Tech Construction Inc. and Sunset Lakes Inc. Both companies are under the control of the Chinese. Hi Tech has Su Zhi Rong listed as its Director while the Secretaries are Zhang Ling Ling and Ming Chen. Sunset Lakes Inc was controlled by Brian Tiwarie but that company is now reportedly owned by BaiShanLin, which has started building homes that range from $50M to more than $100M. It is unclear how BaiShanLin ended up with the lands from Tiwarie because the lands cannot just be sold. The CH&PA agreement is very specific about what a developer can and cannot do with it. BaiShanLin is a company that is under investigations for its vast logging and mining

An overhead shot showing part of the development in Providence, EBD.

acquisitions in recent years under controversial circumstances. It was given concessions on almost 200 vehicles and other pieces of heavy equipment. The other companies that were allocated lands between Eccles and Mocha were Queensway Dax Contracting Service, Nabi Construction Incorporated, Buddy’s Housing Development, Cumberland Developers Inc., Vikab Engineering Consultants, Kishan Bacchus Construction, Caricom General Insurance, Navigant Builders and Windsor Gardens. Queensway has been allowed several acres in Golden Grove. As of July last year, those that had applications at CH&PA for lands were Buddy Housing Development, Queensville Housing Development, A&R Jiwanram Printery, Raydan Housing Enterprise, Lakeview Executive Homes, Gentle P. Elias and Brian Chase, Chung’s Global Enterprise, Prembury Consultants T&T Limited and Romell Jagroop Construction. The Chinese owned Hi Tech Construction has also applied for lands in the Little Diamond/Great Diamond area. Scraps of Meat The Opposition has been investigating the land deals. In 2013, CH&PA said that it had advertised for proposals from private developers. The idea was to have a mix of homes. Back then, Minister of Housing, Irfaan Ali, said that 400 acres were allocated for private development between Eccles to Providence. However, statements and other details coming out from advertisements by even some of the private developers indicate that much more lands were allocated, including areas between Herstelling and Diamond. Minister Ali had defended the mainly front lands that were placed in the hands on private developers saying that it is not true that these were prime lands. He said that a planned highway at the back of the housing schemes from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport and other interlinking roads have made the backlands almost as valuable, an explanation the Opposition is not swallowing. Last week, former Parliamentarian and Leader of the Alliance For Change, Khemraj Ramjattan, said that he is repeating what he said in 2013 regarding the ad-hoc distribution of lands, especially on the East Bank of Demerara. “It is a giveaway. It is simple as that. I said that the housing policy is designed to enrich a few. And then scraps of meat that are left over are being thrown to a few people who are eligible and then some who are not. Big pieces of lands have been given away and we don’t know how much was paid and what systems were used to allocate these friends of the PPP. “Now they asking people to vote them in again. It is 10,000 families who want a home and can’t get. There are some illegalities here.” Back in 2013, a leaked map indicated 1,000 house lots (roughly 250 acres) have been made available at Eccles for house lots and just over 400 acres behind Providence for more. Recently, an attempt to buy cane lands located behind Eccles and Ogle reached a hurdle after the Opposition went to court claiming that the transaction was illegal. The opposition argued successfully in court that a $3B loan from the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission to the CH&PA was illegal and should not be allowed. The court ruled last week that the loan agreement was “null and void” and should not go through.

East Bank lands gobbled up by

‘private developers’

– two Chinese companies, Ramroop benefit

There are shocking details emerging of Government’s handling and distribution of lands on East Bank Demerara.

The Corrupt PPP/C giving away Guyana to the Chinese, their friends and family.