Is this another conspiracy to deceive?

Oct 12, 2023 Letters

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Dear Editor,

A few days ago, I had cause to inform Guyanese that the claims of the President Irfaan Ali government that the APNU+AFC did not make new investments in the electricity sector were false. Being aware of the truth, it caused me to wonder why the Ali government would seek to blatantly mislead the people of this country on a matter that could easily be verified. My puzzlement has lessened with the emergence of what is fast becoming a scandal surrounding the unaccounted sum of US$214M that was discovered by the audit done by IHS Markit, and mysteriously reduced to US$3M. The statement emanating from the Minister of Natural Resources on the matter helped me to realise that the Ali government believes that deception is the art of good governance and integrity is a luxury that his government cannot afford.

Editor, the explanation of the shifting audit figure by the Minister of Natural Resources must infuriate anyone with a modicum of interest in how this country is being managed. I am grateful that the Minister was bold enough to put his hilarious statement in public because it enables one to see, not only the incompetence of the Ali government, but the depths of the contempt in which his government holds Guyanese at home and abroad.  It also reveals the disdain that the government has for the rule of law.

Editor, the Minister informed us in the third paragraph of his statement that Mr. Gossai told him in November 2022 that the unaccounted expenses found by the audit had been reduced from US$214M to US$3M. Thinking of the Minister as a smart guy, the question crossed my mind as to if he asked Mr. Gossai what had changed to cause the sum to fall so dramatically since it would have been hot information, considering that Gossai was not supposed to be directly involved in negotiating changes to the figure. With his attempt to make us believe that Mr. Gossai has only now been discovered to have gone rogue, I wonder if the Minister had also asked Mr. Gossai in November 2022 from where he got his information. This question is logical since, presumably, the Minister did not know at the time that Gossai might have been acting on his own. One would expect those questions to be asked because the Minister kept reassuring us in the statement that his government’s position was always to stick with the US$214M found by the audit.

Thinking that the Minister would have to give his principals the reasons for the change, it leaves me to speculate if Mr. Gossai had been pressed on the source of his information. If Mr. Gossai could not provide the answer, then the reasonable alternative was to ask the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) what caused the change, and not merely to seek a “No Objection”, since it was claimed that the government was wedded to the US$214M, and Gossai was not an authoritative source. Editor, Guyanese must know if this was done because it raises concerns about the care of our public finances and the extent to which the government is willing to level with us on this issue.

Editor, the deception in the Minister’s statement becomes glaring in the disclosures made in the July 2023 meeting to which he refers. At least the Second Vice President should have known that Gossai had no business negotiating changes to the audit figure.  Consequently, one should ask why Gossai was identified as the only source of information in a meeting eight months after the US$3M was first raised?  Was the government informed about this figure by the Minister before meeting with Gossai in July?  Even so, did the Minister or the Second Vice President ask Mr. Gossai to provide them with the report or documentation that contained the change since, according to the second paragraph of the statement, that was one of his roles. The failure to tell us if Gossai was asked for the source document is peculiar because the Minister was expecting a response from GRA and Gossai was not expected to have first-hand knowledge of any negotiated settlement. The absence of such questions does not lend credibility to the conclusion that Gossai had gone rogue.  Indeed, for a rogue operation of that nature to be taking place in Guyana unknown to the guardians of our money for so long, speaks volumes of this administration’s inability to safeguard the resources of this country.

It is interesting that the Minister does not tell us exactly when he learnt that GRA did not agree to the change.  That timing is important because the change that we are talking about is significant-US$211M- and yet it did not trigger an immediate reaction from Gossai’s principals in November 2022 or July 2023.  Considering the foregoing, the Ali administration must tell us what Gossai is being disciplined for.  Is it for failing to share full information in a timely manner with his principals?  Is it for providing false information to his principals?  Or is it because he went rogue?  Both GRA and Esso Exploration & Production (Guyana) Limited (EEPGL) should tell us what they know about this issue.  On a related matter, could the Guyanese populace be advised as to the disciplinary measures a Permanent Secretary has at his or her disposal?

Until the government, GRA and EEPGL can offer more clarity on this subject of definite national interest, I cannot help seeing this story as yet another attempt by the Ali government to deceive the people of this country.

Respectfully,

Rawle Lucas

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• APNU+AFC, Government, IHS Markit, President Irfaan Ali, Rawle Lucas

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