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No evidence Ramroop’s R/veldt complex is a GWI customer
– Operations could be back-billed tens of millions$$$
– Investigators asked to leave compound
The state-owned Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) has started investigations on the Ruimveldt property sold by Government to Queens Atlantic Investments Incorporated (QAII), a company controlled by Dr. Ranjisinghi
‘Bobby’ Ramroop.
Known as the Sanata Textile Mill property, GWI technicians reportedly visited it more than a week ago to carry out checks.
From indications, according to GWI officials, QAII, has not been paying its water bills. It appears that the connections are illegal.
As a matter of fact, GWI could find no trace of the property even being listed as a customer.
“We have made checks of that property, and it is, as you know, a pretty large piece with many buildings, and surprisingly enough, there is no trace of it as one of our customers,” a GWI officer disclosed yesterday.
GWI officials are mystified, as the water company owns the well that had been sunk right in the compound. That well was there for at least two decades, as far back when a Chinese company was there operating a textile mill.
GWI technicians have been accessing the compound quite regularly to carry out maintenance and other works.
The well currently serves about 9,000 customers in the Ruimveldt area, including D’Aguiar Park, Alexander Village, Meadowbank and West Ruimveldt.
“What we found from the initial checks is that there is a bulk meter in place serving the buildings. We were unable to conduct more investigations as our team was ordered to leave the premises.”
The GWI official declined to explain who ordered his team to leave the premises – GWI’s management or QAII.
It is believed that QAII which has been in the compound has been utilizing water from the well since it started operations as far back as 2008. It therefore could be backdated tens of millions of dollars now by GWI for using water and not paying for it.
GWI will have to determine the extent of the usage of possible illegal connections.
GWI’s Managing Director, Dr. Richard Van West Charles, declined yesterday to speak on the issue, noting, through his management, that the matter is currently engaging the attention of the entity.
The Sanata Complex houses a number of QAII subsidiaries including the Guyana Times operations, TVG28, and Radio Guyana. It also houses a drug bond and administrative offices for New GPC.
The problem is a huge one for GWI which currently has more than $4B outstanding from delinquent and other customers. Over the past year, almost $1.8B was collected.
A large number of customers remained unmetered, so it is difficult to determine how much revenue is actually lost. Additionally, a number of new private schemes and commercial operations have been receiving water, but through illegal connections.
GWI, the official said yesterday, is now systematically going throughout the country to determine how much it is losing.
With regards to Ramroop’s operations, it is unclear how long the complex has been receiving water and whether the connections were made when the property was handed over to Ramroop and company.
What is known is that previous Governments under the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) spent US$5M to refurbish the complex before questionably selling to QAII for a mere US$3.4M around 2008. It is unclear whether the US$5M was spent on refurbishing the water connections.
The entire complex, 18.891 acres of it with buildings and erections, has been described as a giveaway by former president, Bharrat Jagdeo, to his best friend, Dr. Ramroop.
The Jagdeo-led administration in 2008 approved the privatization of the Sanata Textiles Complex (Sanata), Industrial Site, Georgetown to QAII for the purpose of establishing a multi-purpose investment complex.
Dr Ramroop at the time had intimated that he envisaged an overall investment of US$30M and the creation of 1200 jobs of which 600 new, permanent jobs would become a reality by the end of 2008. This never materialized.
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