Latest update November 26th, 2024 1:00 AM
Granger should not get a free pass; he allowed the wrongs – Jagdeo
By Abena Rockcliffe-Campbell
Leader of the Opposition, Bharrat Jagdeo, is accusing the media and civil society of exhibiting double standards.
Jagdeo said that it is time the public stops sheltering President David Granger and hold him accountable. He said that the President must share responsibility for the wrongs committed by Ministers under his watch.
Speaking at a press conference hosted at his Church Street Office on Thursday, Jagdeo said that many credit the President for not directly being fingered in any corrupt act, “but he knew of them. We brought it to his attention; he did nothing to resolve these issues.”
The Opposition Leader said that by virtue of knowing and allowing certain matter to prevail, President Granger should not “get free pass.”
D’Urban Park
Jagdeo then moved to point out some of the “wrongs” to which President Granger turned a blind eye.
His first case in point was the infamous US$18M signing bonus that the government surreptitiously collected from oil giant, ExxonMobil. “Granger knew that they received the bonus but when they hid it for over a year, he did not say a word.”
Jagdeo’s next reference was the controversial renting of the Sussex Street Drug Bond.
Following three years of public criticism, it was only in August last year that the Government finally exited the bond at Sussex Street but not before racking up a bill of $314.6M.
The issue of the bond surfaced in 2016 when it was learnt that the $25M bond had been rented under very lucrative terms to businessman, Larry Singh, during the tenure of former Minister of Public Health, Dr. George Norton.
It was pointed out that at the cost of $25M, the Government could have built 12 bonds using the $325M it paid to Singh.
The controversy intensified when it was discovered late 2016 that the facility was merely storing items such as lubricants and condoms.
“He (Granger) knew about the drug bond. In fact, he put together a committee that endorsed it.”
The Opposition Leader then went on to point out yet another concern to the public—spending for the D’Urban Park project.
The D’Urban Park project was smeared after there was little transparency regarding the financing of the initiative.
Almost $1B was expended on this project but there seems to be little trace as to how the monies were spent and how contracts were tendered.
The building Government rented for $12M per month
The Auditor General had launched a special audit into this project but he hit a major stumbling block when he could not find records of transactions during the early stages of the project when it was handled by Homestretch Development Inc. – a special purpose company which was established to oversee the completion of the facility in time for Guyana’s 50th Anniversary celebrations.
Jagdeo said that even with knowing the lack of transparency, “(President Granger) said nothing is wrong; he came out and defended it. “
Jagdeo said that were it a People’s Progressive Party President, “It would have been that the President must be collecting money from Larry Singh and the others but in this case, it is President Granger so it is okay.”
Jagdeo continued, “(Citizens will say) that happened at another level of his government but when we were in office, the President got blame for anything. If a policeman took a bribe, we took the heat for it.
“They say it got to be Jagdeo or Ramotar or Janet Jagan or Cheddi Jagan. But in this case, it had to be at another level of his government. Granger has nothing to do with it; this is the double standard that we have.”
Jagdeo said that Granger basically encouraged operations to allow a little cabal “to feed off of the resources of the country at the expense of the masses.”
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