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What role did Mr. Gerry Gouveia play with endorsing Marriott?
Feb 20, 2013 Letters
Dear Editor,
Over recent years, the local independent newspapers, Kaieteur News and Stabroek News, have been increasing their focus on the number of privatization deals by the government.
As a country at the crossroads, now experimenting also in a number of emerging areas including oil, ICT, hydro-electric power, among other things, these deals have come with criticisms over transparency (or the lack of it) and whether Guyana received value for its monies.
However, Mr. Editor, it has been noted that the government has been singled out in the criticisms and investigations that followed.
Mr. Winston Brassington, as head of NICIL/PU and to a lesser extent, Dr. Roger Luncheon, Head of the Presidential Secretariat, have borne the brunt of these along with alleged co-author of the deals…former President Bharrat Jagdeo.
Strangely enough, the newspapers in their reportage have failed to mention who else would have made the decisions. I would love to hear as a Guyanese who the ministers are that sit in NICIL/PU board with Mr. Brassington and Mr. Luncheon.
I am also hearing that Mr. Gerry Gouveia, Mr. Pat Dial and others would have been with the board. What role was played by Mr. Gouveia sitting as Chairman of the Private Sector Commission and sitting on the board of NICIL/PU? What role did Luncheon play?
Did Mr. Gouveia, sitting on the PSC, representing hotel owners and their principals, endorse a decision for the construction of Marriott, a project that has been generating so much controversy?
Did Mr. Gouveia recuse himself when the decision was taken by NICIL/PU to sell him Duke Lodge in Kingston…a prime property?
Mr. Editor, there is so much more than first meets the eye. I would love, in light of the many public debates, to hear from these gentlemen so that the Guyanese public can have a clear idea of the deals that happened and whether perhaps there may not have been issues of conflicts of interests and even ‘insiders’ trading.
E.G. Sampson
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