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Authorities check Bank accounts for missing PetroCaribe money

May 23, 2017 News

Investigators believe that during the reign of the People’s Progressive Party/ Civic (PPP/C) administration, there was extensive pilfering from the proceeds of the PetroCaribe deal. To this extent, investigators are ready to “follow the trail.”
PetroCaribe was an agreement struck between the governments of Guyana and Venezuela where Guyana would receive concessionary prices for oil in exchange for rice. Monies received from the exchange deal would subsequently be transferred to the PetroCaribe fund, under the purview of the Ministry of Finance.
When the APNU+AFC Administration took over, it transferred all the money that was left in the PetroCaribe fund into the Consolidated fund. Just about $1.9B was transferred.
However, many, including Government officials, are of the opinion that much more money should have been in the PetroCaribe fund.
Opposition Leader, Bharrat Jagdeo, who is sometimes seen as one of the most corrupt politicians in the history of Guyanese politics, recently sought to defend the PPP/C’s integrity. He said that all transactions with use of PetroCaribe money were above board.
Jagdeo said that much of the money was used to fund projects. However, Kaieteur News has been told, “there was definite stealing. What we are now trying to do is figure out how much was stolen and where it went.”
The suspected method of stealing was through the very allocation of the money. Investigators believe that the money recorded to have been transferred for the various projects was not the amount of money used to execute these projects. “(Pilfering) is often done under the guise of projects,” said one investigator.
Further, sources say that it has been found that shipping of rice to Venezuela was far overstated. “It was almost 50 percent overstated, so the monies went into somebody’s bank account and it is being carefully investigated. We have to check to see if there were any unusual deposits in the accounts we suspect.”
Some time back, Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo indicated that the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) received US$115M while the Ministry of Housing got US$10M. Also, US$16M was pumped into the Hope Canal project.
Nagamootoo stressed that while in opposition, “we were told that the money for this project came from the treasury.” While Jagdeo said recently that GPL was given the money, Ministry of Finance is saying that it was a loan and is to be paid back.

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