AFC calls on govt. to release the GYEITI 2020 report

Mar 06, 2023 News

Kaieteur News – The Alliance For Change (AFC) said it is concerned that the government has not made any credible efforts to release the overdue GYEITI report.

In a statement, the party said that last month, the public was informed via Stabroek News that Guyana had failed to meet the extended deadline to submit its 2020 report to the Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI). It added that President Irfaan Ali used his Facebook page to blame the Multi-Stakeholder Group (MSG) with explicit reference to two civic members of the group as being responsible for the delay. Since the publication on his Facebook feed, the two accused members – Vanda Radzik and Mike McCormack have given their views on the situation. However, it appears that political attempts were being made to dictate some of the report’s content, which runs contrary to the standards and practice of EITI, the AFC said.

“This is not the way to encourage public confidence in the administration of our public affairs. Furthermore, the AFC had previously warned that the current leadership of GYEITI could not carry out the organization’s mandate and called for reinstating elements of the previous administration. We still believe that changes are necessary to fulfill the organisation’s mandate,” the party said in the statement.

The AFC also called on the diplomatic community to insist on releasing the report. “It is in everyone’s interest for Guyana to comply with its obligation of membership and for public interest transparency. The silence of the ABCE missions on this matter is of concern since, over time, they have been quick to pronounce on issues of national import.”

The AFC said it noted, however, that in November 2017, the Trump administration withdrew the US from EITI. At the time, the US Congress removed the ‘resource extraction rule’, which required companies like Exxon Mobil to disclose taxes and other fees paid to a foreign government. For example, if this rule remained, EXXON would have had to reveal ALL payments made to the government of Guyana. The AFC said at the time of the US withdrawal, Senators Ben Cardin and Dick Lugar, republicans, had described the move as favourable to ‘Big Oil and Gas – money and Influence’. The AFC calls on President Ali to insist on releasing the GYEITI 2020 report, which is overdue.