Citizens should be able to vote for 25% royalty from oil – Norton

Jun 23, 2025 News

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Kaieteur News – Opposition leader, Aubrey Norton said if Guyanese want the chance to vote for a 25 per cent royalty from Guyana’s oil, they should be able to do so.

“The Guyanese citizens have the right to vote for anything they want. I believe many issues are on the ballot. Adriana Younge is on the ballot, the murder of those boys in Berbice is on the ballot, the level of incompetence and corruption on the ballot, and if people want to put 25 per cent royalty, it should be done,” Norton told Kaieteur News Friday.

He reminded that his party has made it clear on many occasions that it will engage ExxonMobil once in office to ensure citizens receive maximum benefits.

Moot issue

In stark contrast to Norton’s position, Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo could not be bothered by such a move.

Kaieteur reported Sunday that despite some 94 per cent of Guyanese surveyed last year demanding a change to the lopsided ExxonMobil contract, Jagdeo dismissed the issue and said that calls for the matter to be put to a vote is a moot one.

A survey conducted by Ram and McRae in October last year, found that an overwhelming number of Guyanese are in support of a renegotiated oil contract between the Government of Guyana (GoG) and ExxonMobil. Since the terms of the 2016 deal were made public, citizens have been calling on the government to engage the contractor for a renegotiation. These calls have, however, been shut down by politicians, with some even describing citizens as “low lives” for demanding more out of their resources.

At one of his most recent media briefings, Jagdeo was asked: With elections coming up on September 1, will voters be given a chance to have their say if they would like a renegotiation of the contract or not, or will that be some time off?

He responded, saying that he had seen the AFC campaigning on the issues.

“I saw them campaigning on that now, and it’s a question of believability too. So, it’s not just about what you say. It is a question of believability.”

Dismissing the question of a referendum on the contract, Jagdeo said the call is coming from a party whose leader is on Exxon’s payroll. “So, I’m not wasting time, I think, those are moot issues.”

Chartered Accountant, Christopher Ram, had said that the survey provides compelling evidence that the government’s “sanctity of contract” position is at odds with public sentiment. The survey, conducted by Ram and McRae, using the Google Forms platform, attracted 135 responses from a diverse group of respondents, including professionals, academics, students and citizens. Revealing statistics from the survey, Ram explained, “An overwhelming 94 per cent of respondents believe the government should seek to amend the current Petroleum Agreement, with only 6 percent either opposed or unsure.”

Ram, who is also a lawyer, reasoned that these stark statistics alone should give pause to those who continue to defend the status quo of the lopsided oil deal. “The survey revealed that only 3.8 per cent of respondents were satisfied with the existing provisions of the agreement. The remaining 96.2 per cent identified multiple areas requiring modification,” he added.

A whopping 83.2 per cent of participants said they want the royalty rate revised, while 79.4 per cent called for changes to tax payment arrangements. Presently, Guyana receives 2 per cent royalty from Exxon on all petroleum produced and sold, whereas Exxon and its contractors are not required to pay taxes. To this end, the survey found that 66.4 per cent seek modifications to tax certificates; 66.4 per cent want the revenue guarantee revised and another 61.8 per cent support ring-fencing provisions. The GoG has not implemented a ring-fencing provision to prevent Exxon from using revenue from one field to develop another. In this way, Guyana’s share of profits is significantly reduced until all costs have been recovered by Exxon and its co-venturers.

Since the release of the findings of the survey, there have also been calls for a referendum on the current oil contract. Businessman and advocate for a better oil deal, Dr. Glenn Lall, said that the referendum must allow citizens to vote on the demand for a 25 per cent royalty instead of the current 2 per cent, which the previous coalition government had negotiated with ExxonMobil back in 2016. Last year, some citizens had also called for the matter to be put to a vote, but this was resisted by the government. A referendum is a general vote by the electorate on a single political question that has been referred to them for a direct decision. Jagdeo had said then that while there might well be issues regarding bringing ExxonMobil to the table even with a successful referendum, he would prefer to deal with the matter after the general and regional elections.

He had said then, too, that the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) should focus on preparing for the 2025 general elections, and that any discussions on a referendum could be postponed until after the elections. “We have time enough to deal with that after the elections. But right now, GECOM must focus on one question, which is holding elections within the constitutionally prescribed timeframe,” Jagdeo had said.

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• ballot, Elections, Norton, oil monies, referendum, royalty

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