Tiwarie-gate…Harmon’s actions place him in the shadows of distrust—Goolsarran

By Kiana Wilburg
Critics believe that Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, has crossed the line when it comes to respecting

Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran

the boundaries of responsible governance. They are saying that his actions as of recent will now place him under the shadows of distrust.
Those comments come in wake of a revelation by this newspaper that Harmon, on January 19, last, appointed businessman Brian “BK” Tiwarie as Ministerial Advisor on Business Development.
This publication made the appointment known on Monday last and it was rescinded by Government the following day.
Specifically, Chartered Accountant, Anand Goolsarran said that he was shocked to learn that Harmon, a man who spoke against the appalling backdoor deals made by the PPP, would even do such a thing.
Goolsarran said what was even more shocking was the fact that three senior Cabinet members – Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo, Vice President Khemraj Ramjattan and the Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin – have no knowledge of this appointment.
The anti-corruption advocate said that he is nevertheless comforted by the fact that President David Granger has rescinded the appointment one day after it was made public, not by the Government but by the private media.
Goolsarran said that it is evident that the President needs to place a curb on the tendency of the Minister of the Presidency to act unilaterally and without obtaining his prior approval.
He emphasized that the issue of making persons Ministerial Advisors should involve the formal engagement of Cabinet. The Chartered Accountant said that once a decision is made, it should be made public immediately.

University Professor,
Dr. David Hinds

Given Harmon’s actions, the columnist said that all major decisions taken by the Minister of the Presidency without approval of the President and/or Cabinet should be reviewed.
As it relates to Government’s “one-sentence” response on the entire matter, which merely said that the appointment was rescinded, Goolsarran said it clearly suggests that the President must have considered the disclosure embarrassing.
He opined that a Minister is involved, and the buck stops with the President, hence a guarded response. Goolsarran said that it could be that Granger is awaiting the return of the Minister from his business trip to explain himself.
The Chartered Accountant said that it is good that the present administration is acknowledging its mistakes and taking corrective action when these are brought to its attention.
Goolsarran believes that the Government will continue to make mistakes. He noted however, that the President needs to take whatever measures he considers necessary to minimize the extent of such mistakes.
He said that perhaps, the time has come for the President to review the performance of his Ministers before it is too late.
University Professor, Dr. David Hinds is of the belief that the recent developments in relation to Tiwarie points to the problem of administering Coalition Governments.
He said, “Although I am a proponent of these types of governments, I do recognize that for those governments

Minister of State, Joseph Harmon

to be effective there has to be a shift in the political culture. I would not lay any individual responsibility at Minister Harmon’s feet. I don’t know whether he overstepped his authority.”
He continued, “But I would imagine that a Minister does have some scope when it comes to what he or she could do without prior consultation. Having said that I think appointing BK as an advisor should not be a matter for an individual Minister or any individual faction of the government to decide.”
Dr. Hinds said that BK is controversial and is linked to the small cabal to which state resources were unlawfully transferred. The University professor said that Tiwarie may have shifted allegiance, but that does not remove the taint.
Dr. Hinds said, too, that Government’s abrupt one-line statement on the issue amounts to an admission of a mistake. He said that the issue exposes a lack of sufficient engagement by the Coalition Partners outside of Cabinet.
The political activist said that it is clear that the decision was not sanctioned by all the partners.
He said however that this problem is one that started within the APNU and has been transferred to the Coalition. He noted however that the problem—a lack of proper consultation—will have consequences for the Government.
Dr. Hinds said, “There is always the temptation for the large faction of a coalition to act as a hegemony, but that has to be tempered if the Coalition is to work effectively.”
He added, “I know that consultation is not instinctively part of our party political culture, but the effort has to be made. There is need for mechanisms outside of the Cabinet to deal with these larger sensitive political

Manager of BK International, Brian Tiwarie

issues. The President and Ministers are busy and it is difficult for them to make and carry out policies simultaneously. So there must be advisory bodies made up of representatives of all the parties whose job is to think through these things and to offer advice to the Cabinet.”
Hinds opined that the new administration has once again misread the mood of the country, especially its own supporters. He emphasized that there is no appetite among Government supporters for the inclusion of persons closely associated with the former regime.
He said, “I was severely criticized by some Government insiders for making this observation when it was speculated that the government wanted to employ PPP members, Robert Persaud and Nanda Gopaul. People simply do not want any of those persons around the seat of power.”
Dr. Hinds added, “I do understand that in some instances the government has to deal with these people for the simple reason that they own most of the resources, the capital that are needed to keep the economy going. I think this is the case with BK.”
The political activist emphasized however that the government has to be very clear what price they are prepared to pay to be able to deal with such persons. He stressed however that there has to be a cut-off point. He said that making such persons advisors is clearly too high a price.

baseman posted:

Harmon facing reality and applying pragmatism!!  BK will be in!!

"He however emphasized that the facts of the matter are being twisted. He firmly believes that the criticisms which have since ensued regarding the matter are all part of a wicked plot to jeopardize his political career."

I have a feeling he will face the music.

Is this fuh friggin real????  So I was ALWAYS RIGHT, PNC CONSISTS OF DUNCES, FOOLS, RETARDS AND WORST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Seems like Joe is running things and not Granger.

This is a lame attempt at damage control.  The PNC boys got caught.  How did they get caught?  There is no way that Glenn Lall was going to give up his "most favored rich coolie boy status" to BK.  No, that ain't happening, because coolie people gat to scratch out the eyes of the other coolie people who want to be more ambitious than them.

The PNC boys miscalculated.  Black people are loyal to each other.  They did not see this coming.  How perfect was the timing of that KN article?  Dem boys wazz in mid-air.  No turning back.  Glenn Lall controls the media.  Brian Tiwari controls the purse strings.  Let me see which coolie man will win!!

pEOPLE LIKE cARIBJ IS STILL VERY AFFECTED BY slavery AND WE SHOULD REALLY FEEL SORRY FOR SUCH BRAIN DEAD idiots!!!!

Bibi Haniffa posted:

This is a lame attempt at damage control.  The PNC boys got caught.  How did they get caught?  There is no way that Glenn Lall was going to give up his "most favored rich coolie boy status" to BK.  No, that ain't happening, because coolie people gat to scratch out the eyes of the other coolie people who want to be more ambitious than them.

The PNC boys miscalculated.  Black people are loyal to each other.  They did not see this coming.  How perfect was the timing of that KN article?  Dem boys wazz in mid-air.  No turning back.  Glenn Lall controls the media.  Brian Tiwari controls the purse strings.  Let me see which coolie man will win!!

Some people does say Waterfall paper is rag tag news paper,and uncle Adam is an old time PNC,that paper does does spill the beans.

Glenn don't control the media,me thinks he only gat the Waterfalls paper,no radio and TV did he get the licences.???

Nehru posted:

pEOPLE LIKE cARIBJ IS STILL VERY AFFECTED BY slavery AND WE SHOULD REALLY FEEL SORRY FOR SUCH BRAIN DEAD idiots!!!!

Well most here must feel sorry for you that's why you are still here posting shyte again with absolutely no substance.

cain posted:

Nehru posted:

pEOPLE LIKE cARIBJ IS STILL VERY AFFECTED BY slavery AND WE SHOULD REALLY FEEL SORRY FOR SUCH BRAIN DEAD idiots!!!!

Well most here must feel sorry for you that's why you are still here posting shyte again with absolutely no substance.

Dont try to deflect you delicacy to me.

Nehru posted:

cain posted:

Nehru posted:

pEOPLE LIKE cARIBJ IS STILL VERY AFFECTED BY slavery AND WE SHOULD REALLY FEEL SORRY FOR SUCH BRAIN DEAD idiots!!!!

Well most here must feel sorry for you that's why you are still here posting shyte again with absolutely no substance.

Dont try to deflect you delicacy to me.

Hehehehe, banna you find shyte a delicacy?

If BK was bad for the PPP then why would he be good for the PNC?

he Minister of State added, “In fact, we have issued several instruments like these to persons both from the APNU and the AFC side and you would notice that I have signed it for many persons who have helped us in the campaign and those who have the capacity to help us further.”

Money talks. Same shit; different day. PNC and their supporters criticized this during the PPP regime  and now they see nothing wrong. How soon we forget.

skeldon_man posted:

he Minister of State added, “In fact, we have issued several instruments like these to persons both from the APNU and the AFC side and you would notice that I have signed it for many persons who have helped us in the campaign and those who have the capacity to help us further.”

Money talks. Same shit; different day. PNC and their supporters criticized this during the PPP regime  and now they see nothing wrong. How soon we forget.

 

So you ought to congratulating them for quickly descending to PPP levels of corruption.

Billy Ram Balgobin posted:

If BK was bad for the PPP then why would he be good for the PNC?

If he was good for the PPP then why is he bad for the PNC?

cain posted:

Nehru posted:

pEOPLE LIKE cARIBJ IS STILL VERY AFFECTED BY slavery AND WE SHOULD REALLY FEEL SORRY FOR SUCH BRAIN DEAD idiots!!!!

Well most here must feel sorry for you that's why you are still here posting shyte again with absolutely no substance.

I already told Nehru what I think that he is.  He proves me right with every single rant of his.

Minister halts seizure of Bai Shan Lin vehicles

BaiShanLin has been at the centre of controversies over the years it has been in Guyana. The company failed to fulfill agreements signed with the previous administration even as it enjoyed billions of dollars in concessions.
Recently, with the change in Government, the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has been trying to clampdown on all those who have been trying to evade paying taxes, including BaiShanLin.
The State Assets Recovery Unit (SARU) is also involved in investigating the tax dodgers.
Towards this end, GRA, in collaboration with other relevant agencies, launched a special operation to seize a number of luxury vehicles imported by the Chinese logging company, BaiShanLin Forest Development Inc.
Kaieteur News understands that these vehicles were being seized due to the fact that the Chinese company failed to pay the required duties within the legally stipulated timeframe.
But before officials from the GRA’s Customs Department and the Special Organized Crime Unit (SOCU) could carry out the seizures, they received a call from a Government official who gave strict instructions that the vehicles must not be removed, to leave the company alone, and to walk away from the premises.
Kaieteur News understands that it was Minister of State, Joseph Harmon, who gave the orders to the GRA and SOCU officers. Several attempts were made by this newspaper to contact Harmon on the matter, but all proved futile.
Several Government Ministers confirmed that they were aware of the issue. They, however, declined to give an on-the-record comment.
The details of the matter were also confirmed with the State Asset Recovery Unit (SARU). The Unit is currently looking into the issue.
Chairman of the Guyana Revenue Authority, Rawle Lucas, when contacted yesterday, said that he became aware of the issue on Wednesday.
Asked if GRA would still pursue the matter despite the intervention of the senior Government official, he said, “I expect that this matter would be dealt with accordingly. At this stage I really can’t give any further comment. But at least we have a Minister (who could conduct an investigation).
“You have to remember that I am not an Executive Chairman of GRA, so I can only begin to seriously enquire as to whether that really represents acceptable policy from an entity like GRA, and if that is part of their modus operandi.”
Asked if he would be informing Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, on the matter, he said, “Oh, I think my minister is very much aware about this issue already”.

Joseph in more controversy. 

ba$eman posted:

Caribj bai, you are too out of touch.  I can see the PNC linking up with these products of the much touted "Oligarch". 

So continue to praise the Jagdeo oligarchs, whose main activities revolve around assorted schemes to money launder. 

Despite having the lowest land costs, the cheapest labor, and an abundance of natural resources Guyana's manufacturing sector remains as backward as it was 24 years ago.

I can go anywhere in the Caribbean and drink juices made in Barbados, using concentrate imported from Brazil.  

Guyana cannot even do something as simple as this.  If I am lucky I might see Guyanese, rice, fish, sugar, and rum in Caribbean supermarkets.  Loads of Trini products though!

And don't whine about energy costs, as only T&T has that advantage. Jamaica, Barbados, and the DR have to import the same fuel that we do, and yet are miles ahead of us in terms of their industrial sectors!

ian posted:

Joseph in more controversy. 

Joe just trying to make as much cash in 5 years as Jagdeo made in 15!