New GPC, one other get US$98M (85%) of Govt. drug contracts in 2021- Patterson

Feb 06, 2022 News

---

…Dr. Ramroop paid to store medical supplies at QAII complex

Kaieteur News – The return of the same players, meant a return of the same policies—policies that saw pervasive corruption and cronyism, where a few in the elite are enriched from the State coffers through various nefarious means.

This was among the themes of the presentations from the opposition side of the National Assembly, as the Legislative body met this past week for its debate on the expenditures that have been identified, and for which monies have been allocated for—funded from the coffers using tax dollars and other government revenue, such as its oil earnings.
The mantra was repeated however vaguely, bluntly or veiled by the coalition A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) Members of Parliament (MPs).
On Friday when the debates aspect of the budgetary approval process concluded, this point was brought home and made pellucid, by General Secretary of the AFC, David Patterson, when he gave his views on this year’s $552.3B, the biggest Budget ever.
The Ministry of Health has over the years been allocated a sizeable chunk of the overall Budget for the nation. A significant amount of this money is spent to procure drugs and medical supplies.

Prefacing his examples of a return to corruption—as indicated in the most recent Corruption Perception Index—and cronyism, he reminded that, “the return of the PPP/C (People’s Progressive Party/Civic), signals the return of money for the boys.”
To this end, he pointed out that “an examination of the 2020 procurement only highlights what the nation has always known—this government is about projects for friends and families.”
It was at this point that Patterson disclosed to the National Assembly that not only had Vice President Bharrat, Jagdeo’s ‘best friend’, and one other controversial supplier been handed 85 percent of all the monies allocated for drugs and medical supplies, but billions more had been earmarked this year for contractors that have not only been banned locally but internationally.
According to Patterson, based on public records, New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation (GPC) last year received $13.8B (US$70M) in contracts, and quipped, “…we all are aware who is the best friend of the owner.”
He was at the time referencing Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo and New GPC owner Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop.
It would be apposite to note that GPC was up to 1999, a State owned Company. Vice President Jagdeo, in August 1999 assumed Office as Executive President of Guyana and by December of that year, the company was sold to Dr. Ramroop.
A first tranche was paid but before the remainder could be paid off government re-evaluated the business and told Dr. Ramroop to pay a lesser amount.
Patterson in his presentation noted, that not only did Dr. Ramroop’s company get the lion’s share of government drug contracts last year, but the administration then turned around and paid Dr. Ramroop to store the very drugs it was buying from his company.

He qualified this position by pointing out that another procurement detail of interest, “in May 2021 – the company Health International Inc. was awarded a contract for $236M for the rental of warehouse for the storage of Pharmaceutical and Medical Supplies.”
To this end he quipped rhetorically, “no guesses for the location of this company – Queen’s Atlantic Industrial (QAII) Site, Ruimveldt, Georgetown.”
The QAII site is another of the deals that AFC Leader, Khemraj Ramjattan had dubbed as one that “stinks to high heavens.”
This was his position in the House some years back, given the circumstances surrounding the sale of the multi-billion dollar Industrial site to Dr. Ramroop.
Government had not only spent hundreds of millions of dollars on the facility prior to its sale, the administration had also advertised for one thing—a portion of the site and some equipment—but ended up selling the entire sprawling multi-billion complex to the businessman, for what many perceive to be an undervalued price.
This, however, was not the only example cited by Patterson. According to the AFC Executive, Western Scientific Co. Ltd. – a company blacklisted by the Inter American Development Bank (IDB) in 2016 for fraudulent practices, also received $5.6B (US$28M) in contracts from the Ministry.
According to Patterson, “an analysis of the 2021 expenditure for the Ministry of Health shows that these two companies (alone) were awarded 85 percent of the sum allocated, a whopping G$17.9B (US$98M) in contracts.”
Interestingly, the APNU+AFC coalition while in power had pulled several contracts from the Dr. Ramroop owned companies including the payment for storage and medical supplies. The coalition had then contracted a party financier, Larry Singh, for the storage of drugs and medical supplies in what was condemned as a bottom house set up.
He was reportedly paid some $14M monthly for that arrangement.
Meanwhile, Patterson expounding further, noted that at the Ministry of Public Works and Ministry of Housing and Water—another of the Budget Agencies to receive sizeable chunks of the overall Budget—there were contracts handed to blacklisted contractors and billions more earmarked for others.
To this end, he referenced a circular issued back in 2019 by the Public Procurement Commission (PPC) to all of the Budget Agencies and Ministries—Agencies funded through the coffers.
That circular, he said, had provided a list of debarred contractors but despite being banned by the PPC, contracts were still being awarded to them.
He cited as example that the Ministry of Housing and Water’s Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) had last year handed a $890M to one such black listed contractor.
Additionally, he noted that contracts were also awarded to Yunas and China Railway First Group and quipped that the “PPP/C cannot even obey our laws.”
Patterson used his address to the Budget debate to also remind that the country was recently informed that a contract has been awarded for the Ogle to Eccles four-lane highway in the amount of US$106.3M, but “what should be of interest to the Guyanese public, is that due to the fact that US$48M of this was from a loan via the Government of India, only contractors from India were eligible to bid.”
He noted, however, that the PPP/C has now included an additional US$60M for this project and said “this additional sum will be funded from our coffers.”
“No local companies were given the opportunity to bid on this increased tender scope,” he pointed out and said, “one would have expected that the government would have executed this project in two distinct phases, one for US$48M of which the India contractors would be eligible to bid and the second for US$60M on which our local contractors would have had the opportunity to bid – so much for local content.”
Additionally, Patterson noted too that what is of interest also is not what is included in the budget for the Ministry of Public Works, but what has not been included.
He pointed out to the House that in Budget 2021, $105M was included for studies to transform Lethem airport into a regional hub, a new bridge at Wismar and the construction of a new stelling at Parika.
According to Patterson, “after spending $102M in 2021, these projects have vanished from Budget 2022, without a single word.”
Additionally, he highlighted that government will be expending $2.6B in 2022 to upgrade the Soesdyke-Linden Highway, another $6B for the Linden-Mabura road “yet they lack the foresight to build a better bridge connecting these roadways.”
To this end, he concluded his presentation to the 2022 Budget debates pronouncing, “we will support new systems of governance which would facilitate world-class management in all areas of our economy and society.”
Guyana, he said, has been extraordinarily blessed, “let us use our blessings not just to calculate averages that look good on paper, while the standard of living of our people is declining, but rather, with wisdom to improve the lives of all our citizens, while positively impacting our region.”

 

 

 

---

---