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Laws on criminal penalties for corruption not being implemented
- US State Department
The U.S. Government has said that the Guyana Government is not implementing the law that could see criminal penalties for officials involved in corruption.
“The law provides for criminal penalties for official corruption; however, the government did not implement the law effectively,” declared the U.S. State Department in its 2011 report on Human Rights Practices.
The report noted that there is a widespread public perception of serious corruption in the government, including the law enforcement and the judicial systems.
The U.S. State Department noted that in 2011 there were reports alleging Government corruption and complacency in enforcing these laws with respect to officials engaged in corrupt practices.
The report, released Thursday, noted that the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators reflected that government corruption was a serious problem. The State Department cited low wages among police and other public servants as contributing to the incidence of bribery.
The report noted that public officials are subject to financial disclosure laws and are required to submit information about personal assets to the Integrity Commission, but compliance was uneven, and the Commission had no resources for enforcement or investigations.
On September 27, the President assented to the Access to Information Act, intended to promote transparency and accountability in the working of the government and public authorities.
The new law was intended to provide for the first time that persons may secure access to information under the control of public authorities and for the appointment of a Commissioner of Information.
By year’s end, however, implementing regulations had not been issued nor had a commissioner been appointed. The Bill was never assented to.
The State Department noted that in August a senior member of the Guyana Police Force alleged that many officers had connections to drug dealers, and authorities began an investigation.
In October, the Crime Chief submitted a report to the Minister of Home Affairs, “who considered it but took no action by year’s end,” the report stated.
It was Assistant Police Commissioner Steve Merai, now retired, who made bold statements about the involvement of Senior Police Officers in drug trafficking.
When the report of the investigation was submitted to him, Home Affairs Minister, Clement Rohee, said that Merai had more questions to answer, and nothing was heard from him since on the matter.