2%, then 1%, then 18 million, then Charrandass

Aug 25, 2019 Features / Columnists, Freddie Kissoon

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Minister Ramjattan said he was given information that Charrandass was making inquiries about buying gold, so he informed the police. Then the police began to investigate Charran for alleged bribe-taking. Then, the Police Commissioner said the investigation also involved national security. Then, Moses Nagamootoo wrote in the Chronicle that Charran was on the take.

But long before Charran, there was oil. First, it was Exxon who will pay Guyana 2 percent royalty, the lowest for any country that Exxon has invested in. Then Exxon gave Guyana an US$18 million signing bonus – again the lowest among countries that got a signing bonus from Exxon. Now while the investigation into Charran’s alleged bribe-taking and its implications for national security are ongoing, more oil has been found. This time by the British company, Tullow. Tullow will offer only one percent royalty.
Now let’s ask some legitimate questions.
According to Ramjattan, Charran was asking people about the purchase of gold days before he voted yes in the no-confidence motion. Ramjattan used what is often employed by researchers trained in the social sciences – logical deduction.
Ramjattan figured that if he wanted to buy gold, and after that desire, he went and voted to bring down the government (which has not brought down the government even though Charran voted since last December), then he took money. Poor Charran! Because of logical deduction by Ramjattan, the police are now investigating him.
Could we apply logical deduction to the 2 percent royalty? Why would any regime sign an investment contract for the extraction of a huge amount of high quality oil and agree on two percent royalty from the investor? Is Ramjattan applying logical deduction here? Has he thought about informing the police, since two percent is really incredible to believe? Should the police commissioner look at the national security angle here, if there is such an angle?
Exxon gave Guyana a US$18 million dollar signing bonus, but awarded Conservation International in Guyana, a US$10 million donation. Logical deduction should tell Ramjattan something ain’t right here. How can you offer an entire country 18 million but gave just one organization ten million? Should Ramjattan inform the police commissioner that he should probe this inexplicability?
Tullow is offering a mere one percent royalty. Surely, Ramjattan must be as alarmed as he was when he heard that Charran wanted to buy gold (in fact Charran wanted to buy gold from me; he asked me to sell him my presidential gold medal for being UG top student in 1978).
Does Ramjattan smell a rat here with this one percent thing? Now take your pick. Which of the flowing has more implications for national security – Charran’s alleged bribe-taking; Government people agreeing to a deal with Exxon in which Guyana will only receive two percent in royalties for its oil; government people denying that they received a signing bonus from Exxon, then when a whistle blower blew the thing up, they claimed that Exxon gave them a mere 18 million; Tullow paying Guyana a mere one percent for its oil?
Should Guyanese not call upon Ramjattan to use his power of logical deduction, as he did when Charran wanted to buy gold and Ramjattan summoned the police commissioner?
From royalties and Charran, let’s move to expensive cars. The son of a senior minister told me in the presence of Dianne Rajkumar, Minister Ramjattan’s personal aide; AFC youth activist, Arnold Sukhraj; Ogle airport engineer, Raymond Persaud; and businessman, Timol Huggins, that the 2018 model SUV a certain minister bought for his personal use is worth 60 million Guyanese dollars with duty. Now another minister has bought the exact model.
This columnist knows about two ordinary gentlemen that have been buying up expensive real estate to the tune of hundreds of millions. Both are close to a big one in the corridors of power. These two men are fronts for the use of corrupt money.
Glenn Lall asked me to his office last Wednesday and among the things he told me that I can quote is his belief that the APNU+AFC government is more corrupt than the previous PPP cabals. Do I believe him? It is not a question of belief. It is a question of facts. The facts are graphic – these guys are making the PPP kleptomaniacs look like school children.
Dem boys seh that poor Irfaan got charged for selling Pradoville 2 below market price. Poor Irfaan because of the charge, he couldn’t get a visa to Canada. So dem boys asking why no charge for accepting 2%, then 1% and the insulting bonus?
Irfaan told a friend of mine, he will lock them up when he becomes president.

(The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of this newspaper)

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