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Ahead of 2020 Elections… Guyanese should demand politicians publish clear plan on making oil a blessing – Industry Expert
By Kiana Wilburg
As Guyanese inch closer to the holding of 2020 General and Regional Elections, they should demand that their politicians make public, clearly defined plans that will ensure oil is a blessing and not a curse, says Illicit Financial Flows Expert, Gavin Hayman.
Illicit Financial Flows Expert, Gavin Hayman
The anti-corruption advocate made these and other comments during an appearance last week on Kaieteur Radio’s programme, Guyana’s Oil and You. There, Hayman who holds a Doctorate from the University of Reading said, “Citizens should demand transparency and ask for a clear plan for spending the oil money. They should ask politicians to say what are the policies and procedures they will put in place to ensure the money is spent in the best interest of Guyana’s long term development, as well as how they will save some of this money, and what will it be invested in.”
The industry expert said that by now, Guyanese should have access to clearly written plans from the politicians contesting the elections, and if they do not have access to this, they should demand it.
To date, both the APNU+AFC administration and the political opposition have said on various occasions that they intend to spend the oil money on education, infrastructural projects, and developing several industries. However, they are yet to provide detailed, written proposals which include the policies and procedures that will be put in place to ensure that the oil money is spent wisely in all that they do; that the oil revenue turns out to be a blessing.
Like Hayman, institutions such as Chatham House as well as the Natural Resources Governance Institute (NRGI) would have impressed upon Guyana’s leaders, the importance of having a clear vision of their objectives with resources from the petroleum sector.
Both have stressed that this will allow the government to focus their energies and resources on the country’s top priorities.
Specifically, the organizations emphasized that the vision should be underpinned by an analysis of available resources and capacity, as well as opportunity costs and risks associated with the chosen paths for development.
Chatham House and NRGI have said, too, that a vision for oil should be strategic about choosing priority sectors and lay out in detail, the role each government institution will play in delivering that vision and over what time period.
They have both noted that good leadership, consistency of purpose and dedication as well as effective implementation, will be crucial to the realization of the nation’s vision for oil.
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