Shake-up must begin with the worst performers

Aug 28, 2025 Letters

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Dear Editor,

As President Irfaan Ali’s first term draws to a close, he has promised a “shake-up” in government if renewed. That promise must be more than cosmetic. Guyana’s citizens face rising costs, corruption allegations, weak accountability, and under-delivery from several ministries. If governance is to match the expectations of transparency and performance, then the worst performers must be reconsidered.

1. Susan Rodrigues — Housing and Water

Minister Rodrigues has been mired in scandal. A leaked voice recording has triggered calls for an independent international investigation into alleged bribery. Civil society groups, including the Institute for Action Against Discrimination (IFAAD), have gone further—demanding her resignation over claims of corrupt land deals benefitting convicted businessmen. Opposition MPs have pressed for a forensic audit of the housing sector amid unexplained wealth and accusations of selective allocations. A ministry as vital as housing, cannot be credible if its reputation is clouded by allegations of cronyism and cover-up.

2. Deodat Indar — Public Works

Minister Indar is increasingly seen as arrogant and dismissive of accountability. He has pursued multi-million-dollar lawsuits against critics who accused him of corrupt contract awards, kickbacks, and links to politically connected businesses. Allegations of proximity to Double Day Hotel’s owners, tied to controversial incidents, have further fueled suspicion. While suing his critics may protect his name legally, it does little to restore public trust. Infrastructure is too central to Guyana’s future to be handled under such a cloud.

3. Charles Ramson Jr. — Culture, Youth & Sport

The record under Ramson Jr. is one of under-delivery and politicisation. Opposition MP Nima Flue-Bess has documented incomplete and poorly managed community grounds projects, questioning his competence and stewardship of public funds. While Ramson boasts of work on over 500 grounds and high-profile venues like the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall, the timelines remain vague, and outcomes unclear. Many of these grounds, he boasts about are filled with bushes at the time of this letter.  Allegations of nepotism—including claims that contracts and opportunities in culture were steered towards friends and family—further undermine confidence. Many artists were sidelined. His wife’s alleged involvement didn’t escape onlookers’ attention. His failure to invite the opposition to the national flag-raising ceremony underscored the partisan tone of his ministry.

4. Joseph Hamilton — Labour

Labour under Hamilton has fared poorly. Despite the oil boom, oilfield and service workers remain underpaid and work under unsafe conditions. Reports of exploitative contracts and lack of strong local labour protections persist, yet his ministry has failed to mount a serious framework of inspections or enforcement. With Guyana’s economy expanding rapidly, this ministry should have been championing workers’ rights. Instead, it has been largely silent, leaving workers at the mercy of foreign multinationals.

5. Dr. Ashni Singh — Finance

Dr. Singh may be a seasoned technocrat, but citizens have felt little relief. The cost of living continues to soar, wages are stagnant, and his go-to policy has been cash grants. While grants temporarily ease pressure, they are band-aids, not solutions. Structural inflation, wage erosion, and a weak middle class remain unaddressed. More troubling is the lack of a credible long-term fiscal plan to ensure sustainability when oil revenues fluctuate. A finance ministry should provide stability and innovation—not short-term handouts. He was more out of office than in. The NIS is still a mess. The census results still can’t be available.

6. Vickram Bharrat — Natural Resources

Minister Bharrat presides over a portfolio of immense consequence—yet progress has been negligible. Allegations of scandals in mining and forestry, coupled with his failure to bring about meaningful regulatory reform in oil and gas, leave the sector vulnerable. Transparency in contract disclosure remains thin, local content obligations weak, and environmental protections under-enforced. In a resource-rich country, the Natural Resources Ministry should be a driver of accountability and transformation. Instead, it has become synonymous with inertia.

7. Pauline Campbell-Sukhai — Amerindian Affairs

The Mahdia dormitory fire (May 2023) that claimed 20 indigenous children’s lives remains an open wound. In its wake, public calls mounted for ministerial resignations, including hers, given the ministry’s oversight of hinterland welfare.  While she did visit survivors and bereaved families, critics note the response was episodic and insufficient, with long-term counselling and safety reforms left wanting. Editorials have since highlighted failures in grief support and accountability. Added to this, indigenous leaders continue to raise concerns over delays in land titling, underfunded community projects, and poor consultation. Leadership in Amerindian affairs cannot be symbolic—it requires consistency, prevention, and visible advocacy. By that measure, performance remains inadequate.

President Ali has promised a shake-up. But to be meaningful, it must start with those whose ministries have become symbols of corruption allegations, underperformance, or weak crisis response. Retaining them would signal business as usual. Replacing them would restore some measure of public confidence in governance. Guyana deserves leadership that matches the promise of its oil wealth—not ministers weighed down by scandal and failure.

Regards,

A . Rampersaud

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• Corruption Allegations, rising costs, shake-up, weak accountability, worst performers

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