Tampering probe…Gold purchases are labeled for random sampling – Gold Board

Apr 08, 2014 News

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The Guyana Gold Board (GGB) has insisted that stringent measures are in place to track gold bought from dealers and traders, with separate labeling measures to facilitate random sampling.
The statement comes days after an announcement that the Bartica sub-office has been closed by police who are probing a complaint from the Board that gold purchased was tampered with.
There are indications that the tampering was widespread and that Guyana may have lost hundreds of millions in a scheme that involved collusion between staffers of that state agency and dealers.
Five employees are reportedly being questioned.
Yesterday, GGB said that the current investigation is being done on an “internal basis”. No licensed gold dealers of the GGB are being investigated “at this time”, the statement added.
“All gold purchased from dealers and miners are separately labelled to facilitate random sampling. The Georgetown Office carries out its own random sample of gold received from the Bartica Branch. There is also an independent testing and the results are compared to the samples taken at the Bartica location.”
GGB added that its oversight authority is the Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment which was formed in December 2011.
A number of initiatives were enforced through the Board of Directors of the GGB with full endorsement from the Ministry.
“These principles and pillars for the improved efficiency of the GGB included two systems review of the general operations of the GGB by an independent external auditor. The first was done in February 2012, whilst the second re-evaluation of the GGB’s systems operation was done in January and February of 2014.”
The scope of the reviews included a full assessment of the operating system and procedures including, but not limited to financial systems and procedures, internal control systems, human resources capacity and capabilities, security system and security environment and governance structure.
“Hence, the recommendation from the first system review has allowed the GGB to improve on its overall daily business activities by continuously hiring new staff to fill existing vacancies as well as new positions that have been opened up at all of its locations. This has contributed to a number of advances in the Board’s operations.”
Some of these included the confirmation of the General Manager, the hiring of an Assistant General Manager, Assistant Accountant, a Legal/Compliance Officer and the establishment of a sub-committee on the sale of gold, which comprises some of the Directors.
According to the Gold Board, for improved operation, it opened its third location at Charity, Region Two on December 18, 2012. This branch will be closed when the office at Port Kaituma becomes operational during the first half of this year.
“In addition, with more office location, the various staff members are being rotated between the Georgetown, Bartica and Charity Sub-Offices. Since 2012, the GGB has increased the number of licensed gold dealers to ensure that there are improved levels of gold trade both locally and internationally.”
The statement yesterday, also pointed out that since last year, the GGB was made a Supervisory Authority for the Ministry of Finance under the regulations of the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act, through the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
The entity is now seeking to procure new software to modernize gold purchases and also to incorporate information required by the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU).
“On the matter of security, the GGB has upgraded its Closed-Circuit Television (CCTV) surveillance system at all locations. There has also been an increase in the number of physical personnel at the various locations from both the public sector and private sector.”
Later this year, the GGB branch at Bartica will be relocated to the new Guyana Geology and Mines Commission compound, when the latter’s office is completed.
“Moreover, in the last two years, there have been improvements at both the technical and policy level with the approval and implementation of upgraded standard operating procedures for the finance, audit and laboratory departments.”
GGB also released details of its Board members. The Board is chaired by Dr. Gobind Ganga; Deputy Governor of the Bank of Guyana. The members include Jeffrey Thomas, Dabria Marcus, Jacques Foster, Karen Livan, Nareshwar Harnanan, Paul Geer, Pavita Ramkissoon, Rickford Vieira, Patricia Bacchus, Suzanne Bullen and Bobby Gossai, Jr., along with the General Manager and Assistant General Manager of the GGB.
Gold trading is the biggest earner of foreign currency in the country with high prices in recent years leading to an energized extractive sector.
The growth has not been without its problems with the hinterland dealing with increased crimes, illegal mining, prostitution and even cases of reported trafficking in persons.
Kaieteur News was told that dealers would purchase gold from miners across the country at purity levels that vary. This gold would then be sold to the GGB and its branches countrywide. The source said that through collusion, some corrupt staffers in the Gold Board pay the dealers for gold at a 95 per cent purity rate, when in fact the purity level is far less.
It is believed that hundreds of millions of dollars every month is lost in royalties and taxes because of the fraud scheme.

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