Development Bank “a recipe for disaster” – APNU

Jun 13, 2026 News

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…says Opposition rep. must be on Board
…penalties must be included for corruption
…Guyanese must be sole beneficiary from $40B loans

(Kaieteur News) – The Guyana Development Bank Bill, tabled in the National Assembly last week by the Government of Guyana (GoG) is “a recipe for disaster” according to the A Partnership for National Unity (APNU).

During its weekly press briefing on Friday, lead Parliamentarian for the People’s National Congress Reform (PNC/R), Dr. Terrence Campbell flagged the heavy concentration of control being cemented by government.

The businessman was pellucid in his remarks that no member of the party is against the Development Bank, however it believes that the framework to govern the institution must be carefully crafted to avoid a “welfare institution”.

“Whilst there is much to be applauded for the Guyana Development Bank…I believe that as currently structured, this Bill should also be sent to a Select Committee because there are a number of issues and many in the public domain have spoken to those issues,” Dr. Campbell explained.

He highlighted that the Bill proposes a financial institution to be governed without any opposition oversight. The Member of Parliament (MP) therefore suggested that at least one Board member be nominated by the Opposition.

Campbell went on to point out that the Bill addresses financial sustainability and risk management, with Section 22 (2) stipulating all expenses for the bank to be generated from its own revenue. As such, he explained, “This requires skilled underwriting and credit management and there’s much more to be asked because it also speaks about collaboration with commercial banks and financial institutions and development partners.”

Furthermore, the opposition Parliamentarian stressed that the Bill makes provision for a Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to be appointed but fails to state specific qualifications which leaves the position exposed to a candidate that may be inexperienced in finance.

He stressed, “We should not leave it to the Board because one of the fears without an opposition representative and one of the fears with everything being under the minister appointing all board members and so on is a politicisation of the bank and that politicisation can take place all the way down to Linden. ‘Oh, I’m sending Juretha to get a loan. Fix her up’. And that would be a recipe for disaster,” the politician argued.

The MP suggested instead that the bank be established in a manner that allows it to execute its mandate independently.

Additionally, Campbell noted that the Bill also empowers the CEO to enter into contracts on his own. Consequently, he said, “I think it’s a great risk to have a CEO signing on his own. The Bill speaks to a secretary and it should say that the Secretary and the CEO can commit the bank to contracts.”

Equally alarming to the PNC/R is the fact that the bank falls outside of the Financial Institutions Act, raising questions about the oversight mechanism in place for the bank. Campbell warned that billions in revenue will be distributed without a robust accountability structure.

Responding to a few flaws highlighted by Kaieteur News, including that non-nationals could cash-in on loans from the Development Bank, the MP urged that Guyanese should be the only beneficiaries of this initiative, especially in its initial stage, given the limited resources that will be made available to assist small and medium-sized businesses.

“The Guyana Development Bank at this point, the resources should be available only to Guyanese citizens.  It’s not a lot of money. The issue of finance for entrepreneurs in Guyana has been a sore issue for many years…it should strictly be for Guyanese citizens. Later on, we can maybe open it up for those who are resident in Guyana and can prove such residence,” he urged.

Meanwhile, Campbell pointed out that while the Act stipulates penalties for misleading the institution and leaking confidential information, it makes no provision for charging corrupt banking officials.

As such, he suggested that the Bill be adjusted to include penalties for those who corruptly demand favours to grant loans.

“I believe that the government may be relying on other pieces of legislation that can be used but I believe it would be a very good addition to add some clause there to prevent and if happens, to prosecute corrupt actions by bank executives and bank employees,” the MP stated.

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• a recipe for disaster, APNU, corruption, Development Bank

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