Latest update April 4th, 2025 12:14 AM
EITI’s new head being selected through transparent and accountable process
– Former Director was appointed on basis of political association -Minister Bharrat
Kaieteur News – In an effort to ensure the Guyana Secretariat for the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (GY-EITI) gets a new Director to oversee its annual operations, the Ministry of Natural Resources has been in the process of interviewing new candidates following its tender last year for interested applications.
Former National Coordinator of GYEITI, Dr. Rudy Jadoopat
The process, however, has come in for criticism from the political opposition, as it believes that the government is merely executing a plot to remove Dr. Rudy Jadoopat who has headed the entity since its inception.
Challenged for a response to this matter, Natural Resources Minister, Vickram Bharrat categorically stated that nothing could be further from the truth. The minister said, Dr. Jadoopat was actually appointed to the post due to his affiliation with the Alliance For Change and not from a transparent tender process. He pointed out that Dr. Jadoopat is an AFC Executive who campaigned a lot for his party in the USA. Further to this, Minister Bharrat said Dr. Jadoopat’s contract came to an end a year ago but he was still asked to stay on. When the government had issued a tender for interested applicants, Dr. Jadoopat was told of it, he applied, and was subsequently interviewed. “Unfortunately, he was not the best or our most high ranking candidate. Hence we are seeing the narrative being switched in a toxic direction. Irrespective of this, the government remains committed to selecting the best candidate through a transparent and accountable process,” the minister stated.
Natural Resources Minister, Vickram Bharrat
In a statement to the press, the AFC recalled that under the coalition’s leadership, deliberate and purposeful steps were taken to establish the Norway based EITI in Guyana and to secure membership with the international body. It reminded that this was done in record time, and in 2017, a Multi- Stakeholder Group (MSG) was launched and a National Coordinator, in the person of Dr. Rudy Jadoopat, an Economist, was retained to lead a professional GYEITI National Secretariat. The AFC said steady progress was made despite challenges and roadblocks erected to frustrate the implementation of the initiative. AFC also noted that GYEITI grew exponentially from 2017 to 2021 under Dr. Jadoopat’s astute stewardship.
Since coming into office however, the AFC said it is of the firm conviction that the PPP has slowly whittled away at the independence and efficacy of the GYEITI by frustrating its work and demoralising the staff and the Multi- Stakeholder Group, which is the decision-making body according to the EITI International Standard.
“Now, with the sending off of Dr. Jadoopat, it appears that the plan to deny adequate professional scrutiny of the proceeds of the extractive sector, oil revenues in particular, is complete, as he is being replaced by a PPP ‘yes man’, Dr. Prem Misir. This is the crux of the matter. Putting ‘yes men’ to replace highly qualified professionals who make the best decisions in the interest of the people of Guyana, and not necessarily the political party in power,” the AFC stated.
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