Is EPA’s Engagement a Farce?

Jul 16, 2021 Letters

Dear Editor,

I write in response to Edward Burrowes (July 10) on why government is not renegotiating the contract and letter comments (July 10) about the EPA public consultation held virtually (over the internet) Thursday on the gas-to-shore project. It is a lopsided contract and must be renegotiated for greater benefits to Guyanese.
There are several reasons why the contract is not renegotiated. Graft, bribe, or corruption is the main culprit on why the contract is not renegotiated. As Glenn Lall stated, politicians from both sides seem to have been bought out by giant oil companies. They sold us out for their personal gains. They got a few million American dollars, peanuts or crumbs, while the oil companies cheat Guyana of US$55 billion just on one oil block.
The properties of certain politicians and their families and friends are being rented by a giant oil company. Some of the properties are empty lots. And some of the properties are not being utilised. But rent is paid for them. An audit will expose the culprits who are receiving high rental fees. A media house and several businesses in town are among the recipients of rental money. Did that media house report on the oil disaster off the coast of Mexico? Protecting its monetary interests! Only KN and SN reported on the oil disaster.
On the EPA engagement with the public on gas-to-shore, as others commented, it was a sham, a farce, a charade. The extent to which government goes to fool the public is unbelievable. The usual suspects who benefit from contracts were there on the virtual consultation to lend credibility to the project. Questions asked were not properly answered. But when the exercise is over in three months, the gas-to-shore project will receive overwhelming approval from EPA. The VP said it is a done deal. EPA can’t undo it. This EPA exercise is merely going through the motion that there is public consultation as required by law.
One can be certain that those who get private contracts for environmental evaluation will give a favourable report of the gas project when we all know it is a potential disaster in the making, as Mr. Glenn Lall commented several times on his radio programme. One environmental evaluation company is owned by a man who tried to mislead readers about the institution where he studied. The company gave the green light to other projects. He attended a college that is located in Oxford, England, but the public mistakenly felt that he studied at Oxford University. What a farce? People try anything to impress and fool the gullible Guyanese public. Rest assured that said company will get the contract on environmental evaluation and will give green light.
Guyanese must take lesson from what happened in the Gulf of Mexico and so many other oil and gas disasters. Let your voices be heard! The country will never be able to recover from an environmental disaster.

Yours truly,
Samuel Gittens

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