Latest update December 28th, 2024 1:39 AM
Guyana’s ambassador to Kuwait still not accredited
Guyana’s ambassador-designate to Kuwait, Dr. Shamir Ally has not yet been accredited
Dr. Shamir Ally
according to Minister of Foreign Affairs Carl Greenidge. The Minister made this known during the continued consideration of the estimates of revenue and expenditure for the 2017 budget in the Committee of Supply within the National Assembly, on Tuesday.
At the time, Greenidge was being questioned by opposition Chief Whip, Gail Teixiera, about an almost $200M increase in budgeted funds for the salaries of contracted employees under the programme Foreign Policy Promotion.
Teixiera reminded Greenidge that one of the ambassadors had been criticized heavily in the public and that a decision was made to investigate the ambassador to Kuwait. She asked if Ally was still being paid while being investigated.
Greenidge informed the House that Ally remains the ambassador designate to Kuwait even though he is yet to officially occupy the position. He added that the investigation which was launched into the allegations against Ally had been completed.
As it was confirmed that Ally is not yet accredited, Teixiera posed the question how is it that the ambassador designate is maintaining himself, since he is not supposed to be receiving a salary.
Greenidge said, “When an ambassador is appointed before he is accredited he would normally be given an advance because he has to establish himself before all those processes are completed; it’s no different for the ambassador in question.
The process of sorting out the accreditation and having his documents presented to the Kuwaiti authorities is in train and that will be completed in due course.”
However, Teixiera said that the accreditation of Ally is taking an inordinate length of time since his appointment has been a much publicised affair.
This newspaper had published an article which said that Ally was convicted on March 4, 2003 by United States District Judge, Michael Baylson, for the dissemination of false financial information by Acrodyne Communications, Inc. in press releases and Commission filings in 1998, 1999 and 2000.
Ally had come forward to defend his innocence denying liability in the charges which were brought against the company he worked for by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
Ally’s conviction was for violations of the antifraud and recordkeeping provisions in keeping with the United States Securities regulations.
He was charged jointly in 2002 with A. Robert Mancuso and Ronald R. Lanchoney and was also fined US$10,000. His accomplices were fined US$50,000 and US$10,000 respectively. Ultimately, the judgement prevented Ally’s co-conspirators from acting as officers or directors of a public company.
The Alliance for Change had come forward to defend Ally saying that he was employed by the company to help turn it around since it was in the process of preparing to manufacture Digital Television Transmitters for Television Stations, converting from analogue to digital systems.
According to the party, Ally was terminated in July 2000 when the Technical Director Ostroff became the new President. When the Securities Exchange Commission charged the trio, Ally, instead of proceeding with a trial agreed to pay fines without admitting guilt.
According to Ally, this was the best way to go since his termination in 2000 would have prevented him from accessing accounting records which would have enabled him to substantially rebut the Commission’s 2002 charge.
Similar Articles
THE BLUNT OF THE DAY
Sports
Features/Columnists
A Tale of Two Non-appointments
Peeping Tom… Kaieteur News- In Guyana, under the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) government, the Constitution... more
Breaking the Chains of Poverty: A need for political will
By Sir Ronald Sanders Kaieteur News- The year 2024 has underscored a grim reality: poverty continues to be an unyielding... more
Weekend Cartoon
