Trotman declines to address Canje, Kaieteur block transfers approved by APNU+AFC

Oct 30, 2020 News

Former Minister of Natural Resources, Robert Persaud

Former Minister of State and current Opposition Leader, Joseph Harmon

Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman

Kaieteur News – On the controversial handling of the Kaieteur and Canje oil block awards, several Ministers who held authority over this subject area are refusing to offer insight into what really happened. The latest is former Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman.
When contacted by Kaieteur News in early October, Trotman repeatedly declined to offer comments or to answer questions posed to him about his responsibility as a Minister.
“I wouldn’t be in any position to answer anything,” he said, adding that he does not have any documents in front of him, and that those documents would be with the Department of Energy.
Asked again to speak to his responsibility in the transactions, the former Minister again refused to comment.“That was ages ago and I wouldn’t want to make any comment…”
He reminded that the State Assets Recovery Agency (SARA) had opened an investigation into the awards of the Kaieteur and Canje blocks, and due to that, he did not want to comment.“I don’t want to offer any comment on that matter,” Trotman said.
In addition to Trotman, the current Opposition Leader, Joseph Harmon, also held responsibility over the management of Guyana’s oil industry during the Coalition’s tenure.
He had served as Minister of State, then as Director-General at the Ministry of the Presidency.
The coalition has lost the elections and is now in the Opposition.Like Trotman, Harmon refuses to provide information about the awards and transfers. Harmon has said on multiple occasions that Kaieteur News seems to know more than he does on the matter, despite him having served in posts which give him direct authority.

Former President and Minister of Natural Resources, Donald Ramotar

The Canje and Kaieteur blocks were signed away by former President and Minister of Natural Resources, Donald Ramotar, on the advice of former Minister of Natural Resources, Robert Persaud, just days before the 2015 general and regional elections.
Kaieteur News has observed that several red flags common to corruption scandals in the industry, exist in the handling of these two valuable blocks.
Ramotar has said that the awards were made in-keeping with the law.
However, he has not addressed the red flags, including why he agreed to indebt Guyana to oil companies with “pre-contract costs” with no explanation.
Persaud has not addressed the red flags either. Like Trotman, Persaud pointed to reports held by government agencies which he said he no longer had access to.
While the initial awards of the Canje and Kaieteur blocks were made under the Donald Ramotar administration, Ministers from both major parties are answerable, as it was under the David Granger administration that the blocks were flipped.
The process of a transfer of rights in an oil block requires the approval of the Government. Hence, every time stakes were sold in the two blocks, the Government had the responsibility of perusing the application to ensure that the transaction would be above board.
Inherent to such a process would be ensuring government knows who owns the companies to which and from which the rights are being transferred. Public statements by the companies involved, indicate that the approvals were granted.

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