IDB Report casts our leader in the worst light

Aug 15, 2022 Editorial, Features / Columnists

Kaieteur News- What are we going to do with the crop of spineless, clueless, leaders we have in Guyana? What is to be expected of them, given the dark histories of most of them? Can the citizens of this newly oil rich country ever experience better at their hands, see justice under their governance, grow into prosperity with them holding the reins of power? The short answer to all those questions is that nothing but the worse can be anticipated as coming from them, since they know nothing about honesty and integrity, and live for nothing but what is rotten and diseased. All of this is what can be gathered, as extracted from a report on Guyana’s oil sector, as evaluated by the IDB. There is no room for any other interpretations, given how this country now oversees its oil wealth.

The Coalition Government received a US$11.6M loan from the IDB to build capacity to manage our oil sector, to strengthen what was already present for oil systems, management and cost systems, training of people, and creating laws to stand guard over our oil riches. We all can agree on one thing, which is that what we had in place was very meagre, almost next to nothing. We were in a bad place, and we really needed to take stock and get on track as quickly and smartly as possible. We didn’t have the luxury of either cutting corners, or dragging our feet and wasting time, or playing the fool. The tragedy is that leaders are guilty of doing all this, and we now live with what we have, while Exxon and its accomplices in the ripping off of Guyana make rings around Guyana, and robs us blind.

The APNU+AFC Coalition made a start in putting the IDB loan to some use, and then it was knocked out of the seat of government in Guyana. The PPP/C took over the reins of national office, and promptly put the recommendations of the IDB on the back burner, which is a polite way of saying spat upon those recommendations, and all but dumped them into the garbage bin. We give a few examples of what the leaders in the PPP/C Government ignored, and what has benefited the oil companies immensely.

One of the key IDB recommendations was that a Depletion Policy be on the ground, and controlling the rate at which our oil would be brought up and shipped away from our offshore oilfields. Such a Depletion Policy slows down the oil companies rush to produce and produce, while we gain precious time to wrap our arms around what we have and extract the most benefits that can be had for ourselves. A nationally oriented Depletion Policy oversees this oil on our terms and conditions, and can be used as a bargaining chip with a willing partner that is ready to do the kind of deals that ensures all parties get a fair shake, and walk away satisfied.

On the other hand, a well thought out and wisely crafted Depletion Policy can also be used as a weapon to knock stubborn oil companies on the head, and make them see the light. It is that this oil belongs to us, and we are the ones calling the shots about the speed of exploration and production. As we do this we earn and we learn, we become wiser and stronger on the ways of this complex oil business, from its costs, its sales, and its markets, and not to forget the regulations and protections that we just have to have for our own future security and prosperity.

Most disastrously, we don’t have much of anything in the areas identified above. Also grievous, we do not have a slew of other vital aspects not mentioned, such as cost allocation laws, rules about recoverable and nonrecoverable expenses, accounting systems to filter what comes before us, and the calibre of people to lookout for our best interests. All this and more are what the IDB recommended for our government to have and implement. The ongoing tragedy is that the PPP/C Government could care less, while Exxon is more joyful than a pig in filth. Filthy rich lucre, that is.