A milky situation- a very sour one

Jun 08, 2023 Editorial

Kaieteur News – Guyanese businessman Saeed Rahaman Alladin is staring at a huge loss. Unless he gets some legal relief, this longstanding milk importer is facing a loss of close to GY$22M (US$109,000) due to a European company allegedly failing to hold up its end of a milk deal finalized in May, 2022 for the supply of 1400 cans of milk.

The facts are simple, as furnished by the Guyanese businessman. French-based Dana Diary Group Limited assured Mr. Alladin that their product was topnotch, and sent him samples, which passed his taste tests. Further assurance was given that the May 2022 contract would be filled in a few months. The reality for Mr. Alladin proved to be different, and now he lives with a nightmare.

First, the milk arrived in Guyana in late December, seven months from the time of the signing of the contract. Second, the milk originated in India, and not France, as was promised to Mr. Alladin. Third, it was less than the1400 cans of milk powder that the sales agreement specified. Meanwhile, Mr. Alladin had spent GY$100,000 to advertise this Dana Milk to the Guyanese public. In good faith, and trusting in his foreign milk partner, Dana Diary, the company’s milk was sold through well-known supermarkets, such as Mattai’s to Guyanese. Some buyers got sick, Mr. Alladin lost money, and now he fights to save his reputation, and recover his US$109,000 from Dana Diary.

This story is presented to highlight several points. What is currently being experienced is a fact of commercial life, especially when there are foreign partners. Even in the closeness of local participants and local agreements, one side could be shafted and lose heavily. As individual online shoppers can attest, sometimes when the product is received, many things could be wrong with it. Recourse is usually out of the question relative to returns and refunds when foreign sellers are involved. Mr. Alladin has chosen the only course of action open to him, which is to initiate legal steps to recover his millions.

The first thing that has to be said is that foreign companies have their share of rotten apples, and time will tell whether Dana Diary is one of those. It is our position that, given what happened, Mr. Alladin should be made whole, and to the penny. What could happen in the case of food products (or any other) also is present in the world of oil. Foreign oil companies do not enjoy the best of reputations for fair dealing, principled partnering with oil producing nations, and clean and careful managing of operator-host relationships. There are some oil companies that are ahead of some when balanced negotiations are what provide the fairest and the best outcome for all the parties involved.

It is in this context that the voracious and cutthroat nature of foreign oil companies must be recognised. They are not, and should not be found, defensible by any clearheaded and right-thinking political leader, be he or she in government or opposition, civil society or the private sector. The greatest of vigilance is called for, and with the sharpest sensitivity regarding the limitations of the host country versus the proven sophistication, and troubling historical character of this or that foreign oil company. If not, there is the highest risk that a country could be kept in the dark as to what it truly has, and what it should be getting for its wealth.

It should be obvious by now that Guyana was taken for a costly ride in 2016, when the APNU+AFC Coalition Government signed its oil deal. Misled is not the word, nor is it taken advantage of most callously. We were always suffering from the effects of what is called ‘asymmetrical information’, which means that we didn’t know anything close to what we should have known. Today we pay a harsh price, with the world laughing at us. Guyana could get some relief, but it will have to fight tooth and nail for what belongs to its peoples, what is right, fair, and just. Just as it should have been in the instance of Guyanese businessman Saeed Rahaman Alladin. We hope that he succeeds in his quest for full recompense.

Dana Diary Group Limited, Editorial, European, milk, Saeed Rahaman Alladin

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A milky situation- a very sour one

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A milky situation- a very sour one

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