Nepotism and abuse of state funds

(According to News Center of MoneyControl) Caricom heading for bankruptcy, says Guyana President

It would appear, according to Jagdeo, that Caricom is heading for bankruptcy. Well, he has to know what he is talking about as he is clearly bent on putting Guyana in the same position.

In a previous article we positioned Jagdeo's intent on his fiber optic cable that should see the successful completion of the Queens Atlantic data center and IT center. This blog has learnt that after the fall-out of the Norwegian US$30 million deal, Jagdeo has vowed that he will build his cable with local funds.

However, no one has seen the feasibility study of Jagdeo's cable and its total cost to Guyana. What is becoming more real than apparent is the sidling off of state funds to complete the
President's Pet Projects, a PPP - which will continue long into the PPP's next election victory.

STRANGE THINGS
While the data project seems noble, this blog will be proven by the test of time for the use of Jadgeo for e-governance. We predict that the cable will be completed, will be used by the Bees (the Bees will form the management committee) - all achieved by abusing Guyana's national treasury for meeting personal financial goals.

Meanwhile, the abuse of state funds will continue. More Presidential Pet Projects will be done by state funding and the 2011 elections will see the national reserves at an all time low of 300 million (which incidentally will be 200m more than what the PNC had). Donald will boast about the 300m as being a better performance than the PNC.

CONCLUSION
Before year end, the sale of state assets will ensure the rebuilding of the reserves.
So?
So, the Bees will have be laughing all the way to the bank - with my money!

Guyana features in Poker News

Guyana Opens First Casino, But Locals Barred from Gambling

The Princess Hotel in Guyana officially opened the country's first casino last week, but because of a law passed in 2007, Guyanese residents are forbidden from playing there. The Gambling Prevention Act restricted Guyanese gambling after several religious leaders and politicians led an anti-gambling crusade. For now, the only people who can gamble at the casino's 300 slot machines and 11 gaming tables are international ecotourists and the many Brazilians the casino hopes will travel there to gamble.

The government decided to grant limited casino licenses to hotels with a minimum of 150 guest rooms as a way to accelerate the growth of the country's young tourism industry. Guyanese President Bharrat Jagdeo denounced the hypocrisy of opening a casino where only foreigners are welcome, saying that freedom of choice should outweigh antigambling concerns. “For me, this is something that I find distasteful. I believe that Guyanese should enjoy all of the choices in the country… our society is a moderate one…there was opposition, but we will give people choices,” Jagdeo said.

The Princess Hotel is owned by Turkish hotel group Princess Group, which owns 14 hotels internationally. The company, which bought the hotel for $15 million in 2008, is exploring legal loopholes that would allow Guyanese residents to gamble at the casino as long as they are guests of the hotel. In addition to slots and table games, the casino plans to host poker tournament satellites in the future.

Legalized Gambling illegal to Guyanese - Imran Khan

Legalized Gambling illegal to Guyanese
By Imran Khan

Freedom is not worth having if it does not connote freedom to err. It passes my comprehension how human beings, be they ever so experienced and able, can delight in depriving other human beings of that precious right – Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

Following comments made by President Bharrat Jagdeo at the formal opening of the Princess Casino there has been a reheating of the debate on the virtues of casino/gambling legislation in Guyana. The President finds himself in some difficulty with regard to what appears to be an about face on the issue given his most recent comments and has been copping some criticism.

There is merit in most of the criticisms I have seen, however I have found that a narrow view is being mostly propagated (perhaps for political and other convenience) when there is a critical larger issue which needs to be ventilated.

The point of conditional and thus discriminatory casino/gambling legislation, in my opinion, takes a U-Turn from basic human equality – an essential facet of life now, apparently, taken much for granted to the point where it is treated with scant regard by even our National Assembly.

In my mind the issue is a simple one which can be a sorted through by asking a basic question. “How can an individual – regardless of who he or she is – have a legally protected right to partake in an activity in MY country which legally I, as a citizen of said country, am debarred from participating in?”

I am not a gambler and I may never visit a casino in Guyana or anywhere else, however I take offense to any law which prevents me from participating in an activity which foreigners are allowed to freely partake in. There can be no moral justification of it in what we all consider – perhaps to varying degrees – to be a democracy. The freedom of choice has been withdrawn from locals while foreigners have that option.

I have agonized over this to find some way of accepting that it can be. I am unable to find even an iota of sense or good judgment in it.

My view is that gambling should either be made legal and permissible for all in Guyana (whether Guyanese or not) or it should be an illegal activity for all. Legislation which discriminates on the basis of nationality reverses hundreds of years of social advancement.

It cannot be legal for some and illegal for others. Surely we have not forgotten times when there were restaurants for some, washrooms for some and when the front of the bus was only for some among other discriminatory practices.

The contention that government should allow vices for foreigners in our land whilst ‘protecting’ its citizenry from these vices is a flagrantly dangerous one as it is grounded in false logic and flawed thinking.

It is, in fact, the bedrock of hypocrisy.

The legislation as it now stands allows a loophole which defeats the presumed intention of the law. A local can very well enter and partake in the activities of the casino if they are a guest of the hotel. Therefore there is no real protection of the citizenry against the vice. It is in fact a worsening of the vice.

Whereupon a Guyanese wishing to gamble could have just walked into the casino and so do, they now have to expend additional financial resources to book a room to qualify themselves to gamble. For persons who are intent on gambling this is not a deterrent, it is a mere inconvenience. Addicts will find a way of overcoming the hurdles and the current design of the law aids them in so doing.

Also for government to take the role of – based on the construct and operations of our Parliament – unilaterally determine what is good and what is not for citizenry and enshrine same in law is to set a scandalously treacherous precedent – the perils of which, through unkind experience, I am sure most are all only too familiar with.

What next? Exclusive dining options for foreigners? Special airport transportation services only for foreigners?

The precedent has been set.

THE ROTTING CORPSE OF THE MARRIOT AWAITS BURIAL

In January 2009 the President assured Guyanese of an alive and well Marriot Hotel, aback of Kingston.

With the government already spending millions of dollars on relocating and revamping 42 sewage pipes it was a done deal ! or so u would think.

Why has President Jagdeo held on to a deal that is dead with no real hope of revival? One can only think that he believes that there was such a DEAL.

WHY ? Why? EXACTLY WHY HASN’T THE MARRIOT HOTEL BUILT?? We refuse to believe that the Marriot Deal was used to moved squatters off the seawall, we refused to believe that the Marriot could have replaced the Pegasus and we refuse to believe that the President dreamt that he has a deal with the company, Marriot Incorporated.

This ‘Marriot Hotel deal’ was expected to be closed since mid 2008 but then the President said that “That was the time when the turmoil in the capital markets escalated with the collapse of some financial institutions and you had the catastrophic drop in the stock exchange and the credit crunch deepened and therefore, traditional sources of capital that were identified were no longer there. So the financial closures simply could not have happened,”

In May 2009 government advertised for expressions of interest in a joint venture for the a location aback of the Kingston Seawall. The Privatisation Unit said the government was seeking interested investors for the project, a total of 6.9 acres of land situated in the north-western part of Kingston bordered by the Atlantic and the Demerara River. The government was look for an investment of US$20M.

Oh well and in 2010? We still await this government rated 5 Star hotel or RIP Marriot.

Boycott looms for Guyana's 1st elections since '94

Boycott looms for Guyana's 1st elections since '94
(Associated Press)


GEORGETOWN, Guyana — Opposition leaders in this South American country threatened Thursday to boycott the first municipal elections in 16 years over a plan to give a government-dominated commission control over local affairs.

The government says the proposed seven-member commission would reduce the central government's power over cities, but critics note that the government would still appoint a majority of its members.

"We can't agree with this and are not prepared to work with this," said Oscar Clarke, general secretary of the main opposition People's National Congress.

Clarke said his party might boycott planned April elections if the government doesn't agree to give local governments greater control over their own affairs, such as helping decide how to allocate funds.

He complained that the current system gives the central government power to fire and hire key city staffers, as well as to withhold funds for municipalities and neighborhood councils.

The government has proposed the commission plan to parliament as an alternative.

Vishnu Persaud, Guyana electoral commission spokesman, said officials are planning elections for a still-unset date in mid-April to choose mayors and councilors of six towns and 65 rural districts.

Guyana has not elected mayors, district and village leaders since 1994, largely due to continuing disputes about how to update voter registration lists.

Disputes over voting lists also prompted delays in several recent presidential elections.

Plans to hold municipal elections last year were scrapped because officials said new voter cards based on updated lists were not yet ready and a redistricting project had not been completed.

Presidential and general elections are scheduled to be held next year.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Business Monitor International rankings

The recent (March 2010) issue of the BMI's Latin America and Caribbean Monitor gives Guyana a very low ranking for a number of areas. BMI has also provided a scathing outlook and its own projection of growth for Guyana.
A summary:

BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT
Guyana scores 38.1 in BMI's business environment ratings, ranking it 117th out of 167 states.

SUGAR
"According to Finance Minister Ashni Singh, sugar production will add 1.0 percentage points to real GP growth in 2010, in contract with our own more cautious stance on state-owned Guyana Sugar Corporation's growth potential. as a result, we hold to our 3.5% real GDP forecast for 2010."

BMI view on Government
"Domestic opposition to government intervention in the economy is becoming the biggest threat to the ruling People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) electoral hopes in 2011. with little chance of a constitutional amendment to allow President Bharrat Jagdeo to stand for re-election,t he party will be hard pushed to regain its majority, in our view."

BMI's view on Data and forecasts
"Our concerns over Guyana's fiscal woes have been exacerbated by the Government's 2010 national budget, which pledges a substantial uptick in infrastructure and social expenditure. If revenue flows fail to meet government's expectations - which we expect will be the case given that our own 3.5% real GDP growth forecast for 2010 is lower than Government's 4.4% forecast - the fiscal gap could be substantially above 2009 levels. Until we get a clear breakdown of the planned budgetary expenditure, we hold to our GY22.3bln (or 7.9% of GDP) central government deficit forecast.


UPDATE (WPG update)
WPG has been reliably informed that the Norwegian's LCDS promise is evaporating faster than the carbon emissions. The money will now be tied up in the World Bank's coffers until that institution is satisfied that proper accountability is in place for its use.

The LCDS fund was the main source of funding for the Government's fiber optic cable and the road to Amalia falls. Since that is now uncertain, we opine that Jagdeo will force Finance Minister to get Parliamentary release of funds for those projects.

With a clear majority in parliament, they will get what they want - resulting in greater deficits per the BMI projections.

Who will prevail - Guyana's PPP Presi-race

The battle continues for the Presidency candidate for the ruling party.

Some are secretly endorsing others while some are declaring ‘goat aint bite me’
But who will prevail?

We have already analyzed and opined the possibility of constitutional changes that can see the young dictator continuing his rule. For instance, the pursuit of overseas voting by filing a constitutional motion can see GECOM postponing the holding of any elections to have those in the Diaspora registered.

This postponement of the elections could see the government holding office for the next two years (and dictator holding unto presidency)

Then there is another theory being touted:
The Dictator steps out the race, returns to "help" as Prime Minister and then sworn in as President.

Guyana's Constitution says that the any president is barred from running for a third term for that Office. But the current dictator will not run for the Presidency or better yet be elected as President. He could be the Prime Minister or serve as another Minister in the government and be sworn in as President if the President at that time is unable to perform the duties of President.

With that aside, from the looks of things the Opposition Parties may not have a chance at even grasping at the seats of government.

The PNC is virtually dead, probably presently on saline solution but is dying a slow death. The only other real party at this time is the Alliance for Change, but what chances they really have in picking up the needed votes for change? They are gonna pick up a few votes from the young and professional, but there is no real indication that Guyanese are really ready to vote on issues and not race.

So who will actually be around in 2011?

Well, the race is apparently still on between Donald Ramotar, Ralph Ramkarran, Clement Rohee and possibly Moses Nagamottoo for Presidential candidate.

These could be all a puppet show.

Word out is that a few have been booted and a few promised promotions. For instance:
--> Carolyn Rodrigues is tipped to be Prime Minister while
--> Sam is said to be rehired as a consultant.
-->Robeson Benn who was once tipped to be Prime Minister but who has ‘hammered’ too many wrong nails is tipped to be Minister of Mining. (a post set up to ensure that mining is minimized to capitalized on the LCDS finds)
--> Donald Ramoutar will be Minister of Works
--> A Ministry of Communications is to be shared by someone close to the President and yet to be named.
--> There is word that Odinga Lumumba will be made a Junior Minister (possibly the Sports Ministry)
--> Irfaan Ali is expected to be the Culture. Youth and Sports Minister
--> The current Culture Minister will probably be a serving doctor at the Georgetown Public Hospital or head a foreign funded health programme.
--> Pauline Sukhai will remain Amerindian Affairs Minister.
--> Kellawan Lall is said to have already gotten the boot.
--> Manniram Prashad will not return (he is making no money holding the post of Tourism Minister)
--> Priya Manickchand will remain and her sisiter Jaya Manickchand is tipped for a Junior ministerial role.
--> So is Attorney General in waiting Anil Nandalall (and no, he will not be AG) Charles Ramson will remain there until someone else gets Senior Counsel Status and accepts the job.
--> Region 6 Chairman Zulfikar Mustapha is tipped for a ministerial post.
--> Robert Persaud will retain his post.

But there are a few who MAY retain their post for the fear of interdiction by the United States. Leslie Ramsammy is one of those.

These are The Happy Faces of the PPP government to come in 2011 !

Guyana's faux pas - data vs power

Wikipedia says:
"The electricity sector in Guyana is dominated by Guyana Power and Light (GPL), the state-owned vertically integrated utility. Although the country has a large potential for hydroelectric and bagasse-fueled power generation, most of its 226 MW of installed capacity correspond to inefficient thermoelectric diesel-engine driven generators."

Wikipedia also notes that Guyana's blackout (power outage) is the highest incidence in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The most incisive statement is that,"Electricity prices in Guyana are the third highest in the Caribbean." The rates range between US$0.25cents for residences and US$0.35cents for businesses (kWh). See GPL site.

The promise of cheaper power has been echoed for more than 30 years by several governments and now seems only a comfort to fools. It has been years since we have been told of Hydro Electricity and how such a venture would save us of billions of dollars we already spend each year on our fuel bill. For instance, our petroleum import bill for 2007 was almost 40% of our GDP. Not much has changed since then has it?

However, the Government of Guyana is now throwing more than US$37million behind bringing another fibre optic cable, a cable which benefits are still to be calculated.

In 2008 the President of Synergy Holdings Inc. (Makeshwar Motilall) spoke of bringing the Amaila Falls Hydro Project to a working state as he calculated an investment in this project at $400 million. Since 2002 we hve heard that the Hydro project has been slated to begin year after year. In 2006 Mr. Motilall was quoted as saying that the financial closing and ground breaking for this project were targeting for 2007 with December 15 2010 as the latest commence of work date. This 100 mega watt station is said to aid in the development of large scale industries and domestic consumption.

But has the government changed its course of direction in pursuing hydro power? Since the Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between the government and Synergy Holdings Inc, the Company has repeatedly been quoted in the local press as saying it is awaiting financial closure.

As noted above, The government has now quickly secured more than US$37 million to bring a competing fibre optic cable to promote e-governance and break the Guyana Telephone and Telegraphy Company monopoly. While the President has said that his cable will be used for egovernenace, his Ministers and the PPP MPs have insisted (even in Parliament) that their cable will be competitive.

At the same time, the telephone company (GT&T) has said that it was/is investing US$60 million on a new undersea cable.

So, while the Government is finding US$37 million for a data cable, it is hard pressed to find a Lesser amount for hydro electricity?

Why are they investing in something that others are investing in when they cannot supply basic power? What will the GoG's customers pay for bandwidth prices and will the GoG be regulated?

Also, what will power up the customers' data customers?

There is more to this data cable deal than can be explained by economics, politics or by the lame excuse that they want to bring data prices down by their (GoG) own cable.

Corbin's Electricity II

corbin elecctricity II

Corbin's Electricity

Corbin Electricity

Corbin's Household assistants

Investment of the taxpayers continued

See document here

Corbin - Household Assistants
Contents read:


14 October 2009
Ms Paula James
Principal Assistant Secretary – Finance (ag)
Office of the President
New Garden Street
Bourda, Georgetown
Dear Ms James
Refund for Household Assistants – Leader of the Opposition
Please find attached the disbursement receipts Nos. 66381- 66382 and HPS
Ordinary Imprest Vouchers for payment to two (2) senior household assistants for
the month of September 2009 totalling $65,664 (sixty five thousand six hundred
and sixty four dollars).
I would be pleased if the necessary arrangements be made for reimbursement.
Yours sincerely
………………………
Robert H O Corbin, MP
Leader of the People’s National Congress Reform &
Leader of the Opposition

Great investment for Guyanese Taxpayers - II

Great investment for Guyanese Taxpayers, Part II

We continue our analysis of the great investments that Guyanese taxpayers are proud to make. In the last installment we showed how each taxpayer is investing in the person and assets of the President.

In this second part, we will show how our taxpayers invest in the person and assets of the opposition leader.

We hope that at the right time, we can claim fair share of returns from these persons and their assets.

Unlike the previous paper, this bill must be on the conscience of the Opposition Leader since it is yet to leap off the Order Paper into the debate.

Leader of the Opposition (Benefits and other Facilities) Bill
(WHAT ELSE TAX PAYERS COULD BE PAYING):
1. Rent free, furnished office accommodation

2. Medical attention including medical treatment and reimbursement of medical expenses incurred by him for himself and dependent members of his family

3. Full time security at his home

4. Services of a secretary, executive security, chauffeur, gardener and domestic help

5. Vacation allowance applicable to that of the government minster (usually is 2 first class tickets)

More to come.

Berbicians - lots more to come

The picture on the left is a replica of how Berbice was from Sunday 9 am to Monday 5pm.
Blackout.

Calls to the GPL offices explained nothing - they claimed a maintenance that was not 'fixed' properly.

Berbice will continue to enjoy blackout!

WHEN WILL FIP FLIP THE SWITCH?

WHEN WILL FIP FLIP THE SWITCH?
Since 1996 Synergy Holdings Incorporated has been ‘working’ to bring the Amaila Hydro Project to life’. Synergy Holdings Inc is owned by overseas-based Guyanese Makeshwar ‘Fip’ Motilall and each year from 1996 Guyanese have been promised that this Hydro Electricity Project will be powered up.

Here is a recap of these promises:
In 2008 Motilall said that the Engineering, procurement and construction bids would have been closed on the 30th October, 2008 and contractors would have been identified shortly with works going into ‘full swing in the 1st quarter of 2009’.

But this laughable position was later given at another forum which was attended by His Excellency President Jagdeo. The bids were pushed back and the investors and the government agreed that giving bidders an extension of time ‘would benefit all concerned’.

What has happened since?
There was talk that Sithe Global Power would have been providing $400 million and there were eager investors waiting to pump money into this.
In 2002 Motilall was quoted as saying that the project could cost $312 and this would be obtained from private financial institutions. (NONE NAMED because NONE CAME FORWARD).

BUT in 2006 here is what we heard, ‘we are STILL AWAITING FINANCIAL CLOSURE FOR THIS PROJECT’.

While there have been talks about the project kicking off in 2010 from 1996 to now there has been a long list of promises and excuses about this project.
This 100 megawatt facility is expected to reduce Guyana’s dependency on fossil fuels. We spend more than 40% of our GDP on Fuel!

YOU TELL US WHY INVESTORS ARE NOT TUMBLING OVER EACH OTHER TO PUMP MONEY INTO AMAILA??

Wanted Bulletin - Shafdar Ali

Bulletin:

POLICE PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICE
Police Headquarters, Eve Leary, Georgetown
Tel: 225-5401 or 227-2685
Email: propolice247@yahoo.ca

PRO:29 February 26, 2010

News Editors,

WANTED BULLETIN

Shafdar Ali, who is the Regional Executive Officer of Region No. 4, is wanted by the police for questioning in relation to a multi-million dollars fraud committed on the State of Guyana.

His particulars are detailed below.
Anyone with information that may lead to the arrest of Shafdar Ali is asked to contact the police on telephone numbers 225-6411, 225-2700, 226-9941, 225-2227, 226-1326, 225-8196, 225-3650, 911 or the nearest police station.

All information will be treated with strict confidence.

Name: Shafdar Ali
Height: 5’ 7”
Complexion: Fair
Last known address: Lot 83 Better Hope North, ECD.

Photograph attached.


Sgd)Ivelaw Whittaker
Public Relations and Press Officer

Great investment for Guyanese Taxpayers

HURRAH!



HERE IS A LIST OF EXPENSES YOUR TAXES WOULD HELP WITH NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS:

The President’s Benefits Bill of 2009

1. Water, electricity and telephone bills

2. Personal and household staff, clerical and technical staff

3. Medical attendance, medical treatment/reimbursement of medical expenses

4. Full time personal security/guard service for home

5. Motor vehicle, owned and maintained by the State

6. Toll Free road transportation locally

7. Annual vacation allowance equivalent to the cost of 2 first class tickets

8. Tax exemption status

Public Accounts part trios

We continue to analyze the report of the Public Accounts' Committee.

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DEC 2004.
The Public Accounts Committee said that it expressed dissatisfaction that the Guyana Office for Investment retained $0.522 Million which was not expended, IN VIOLATION OF THE LAW, from the amount $7.4 million allocated for the rehabilitation of office building and purchase of office equipment instead of returning same to the Office of the President for REPAYMENT to the Consolidated Fund.

FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DEC 2005
The Public Accounts Committee in its report noted the frequency in which the National Communications Network operated in violation of the laws in not following the Procurement Regulations and advised that the Accounting Officer of that Agency should employ greater supervisory control to ensure that there was adherence to Tender Board Procedures.

MINISTRY OF FINANCE
FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DEC 2004
The Committee in its report for that year expressed concern about the many unlicensed liquor operators. It was noted from the Auditor General’s report that amounts totaling $15.949 million were collected for liquor licenses. An examination of liquor licenses records for Regions 2, 3, 4 and 10 revealed a total of 1855 registered premises did not renew their licenses in 2004. In the absence of information of the status of these businesses, it could not be determined whether all were due for renewal. The PAC proposed that the Custom and Trade Administration investigate this matter.
 
FOR THE YEAR DEC 31 2005
The Committee continued to express concern that monies collected from the Lottery Fund
1.WERE NOT deposited into the Consol Fund as provided for in the Constitution and
2.Were spent without the consent of the National Assembly

FOR THE YEAR 31 DEC 2004
MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS
The Committee reports that an imprest bank account no.444 which became non operational in July 1996 reflected an overdraft of $51.635 million. The Committee proposed that the Ministry prepare a losses report and submit it to the Finance Ministry to resolve the issue.

With some 11 stale dated cheques valued at US$12,591.36, which were remitted though Diplomatic Bags and whose whereabouts have not yet been ascertained, the Foreign Affairs Ministry was advised to approach the Finance Ministry with a view of obtaining guidance in the clearing of the cheques.

The Committee said that in respect of the Foreign Missions, the Auditor General noted that some of the Mission lacked adequate segregation of duties in the Accounting Units.

FOR THE YEAR 31 DEC 2005
There was evidence to indicate that remittances to the various Missions were not received in a timely manner to allow for the smooth execution of the operations of these missions. The Report said that remittances to meet capital expenditure did not arrive at the Missions until after the close of the financial year, and the committee expressed serious concerns over the issue. In this regard the committee proposed that a routine system be adopted for remitting monies to missions, especially in relation to capital expenditure.

The Auditor General reported that the main bank account was affected by two outstanding advances totaling US$3,901.83 issued to the Ministry of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation to facilitate payment of hotel expenses for a Ministerial visit.

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2004
The Committee advised the Ministry to present all the financial returns for the warrants issued for 2004 for Audit examinations.

FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
Report said that the Committee noted with concern that the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority RECEIVED funds from the Agriculture Ministry through subsidies and Contribution to Local Organizations rather than subventions to conduct its operations. It was reported that in the AG report that the NDIA was formed by ACT in 2004. The Authority came into ACT during MAY 2005 and is a separate and legal entity and is required to maintain its OWN accounting records which are subject to separate reporting and audit.

MINISTRY OF TOURISM, INDUSTRY AND COMMERCE
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2004
Amounts totaling $1.099 million were expended to purchase computers, photocopier, workstation desks and filing cabinets for the Guyana Tourism Authority resulting in an excess expenditure of $598,544 which was deemed as UNAUTHORISED. The Committee in its report expressed concern that the Ministry has been expending sums that were not approved by the Finance Ministry.

MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2004
Amounts totaling $4.850 million expended to purchase 1000 of ‘What’s cooking in Guyana’. The books were received and taken to the Book Distribution Unit of the Ministry. The report said that a physical count revealed that 609 books were in stock where as the bin card and the stock ledger showed balances of 780 and 826 respectively. The Committee advised the Accounting Officer to consider a new mechanism for the distribution of school books.
Three years has elapsed since the Ministry filed a losses report on the misappropriation of funds totaling $136,637 and the matter had not received a response from the Finance Secretary. The Committee asked that the Accounting Officer take the matter up with the Finance Ministry.

THE GEORGETOWN PUBLIC HOSPITAL CORPORATION
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2004
The Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation which is now a separate entity from the Health Ministry continued to use the Ministry’s Cabinet approval CP (2003) 11:4: M dated 25 NOV 2005 for the purchase of drugs and medical supplies from specialized agencies, locally and overseas. The Procurement Act supersedes the Cabinet decision and as such the Committee advised the GPHC Accounting officer to adhere to the Procurement Act.

FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
The Committee in its report noted that the Corporation was using a Cabinet approval as the basis of procuring drugs from the New Guyana Pharmaceutical Corporation rather than procuring such drugs through the Health Ministry. It was reported by the Auditor General that amounts totaling $443.203 Million were paid to the New Guyana Pharmaceuticals Corporation for the supply of drugs and medical supplies and during the year under review, the Corporation entered into 3 contracts using the Ministry’s Cabinet approval CP (2003) 11:4: M dated 25 Nov 2003 for the purchase of drugs and medical supplies of which amounts totaling $198.802 million were paid on these contracts.

MINISTRY OF HEALTH
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2004
The Auditor General Reported that amounts totaling $723.945 were expended on Materials, Equipment and Supplies. Included in this figure are sums totaling $675.816 million which related to the purchase of drugs of which $225.059 million represents purchases made from overseas suppliers. This was done via cabinet approval CP (2003):4: M of Dec 2003 which was utilized to purchase drugs and medical supplies from specialized agencies locally and overseas. Given the time period that would have elapsed, it would appear necessary for the present arrangements for the supply of drugs and medical supplies from overseas be reviewed.

FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
The Committee expressed disappointment over the absence of a supervisory role by the Government and particularly the Health Ministry in the procurement process involving the GPC.

ONCE AGAIN THE COMMITTEE WARNED AN ACCOUNTING OFFICER OF THE PRACTICE OF PROCURING GOODS AND SERVICES WITHOUT TENDERING.

LABOUR, HUMAN SERVICES AND SOCIAL SECURITY
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2004
The Public Assistance imprest bank account no.092 which ceased to be operational several years ago was overdrawn by $270.586 as at 31 Dec 2004. This was due mainly to inadequate provisions made over the years in the National Estimates to facilitate the payment of Old Age pensions and public assistance.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
The Committee expressed serious concerns over the failure of the Heads of Municipalities and District Councils to submit financial statements on an annual basis as required by the law despite the legal requirement to produce financial statements in a timely manner as well as the penalties involved for the failure to do so. It was noted in the PAC report by the AG that two of the municipal councils and majority of the district councils have been violating the provisions of the Law.

MINISTRY OF CULTURE,YOUTH AND SPORTS
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
The Committee in its report said that with regard to the Auditor General’s comments that the Ministry operated a current account no. 410004235 held at the then National Bank of Industry and Commerce for the operations of the National Cultural Centre and did not pay over the proceeds to the Consolidated Fund and have the related expenditure met out of the appropriations.
The Committee advised the Accounting Officer to regularize the operations of the National Cultural Centre and reminded that all revenue collected should be paid into the Consolidated Fund and related expenditures be met from appropriations.

MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND WATER
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
It was reported by the Auditor General that unspent monies totaling $23.796 was not refunded to the consolidated Fung BUT KEPT IN A SEPARTE ACCOUNT. The Committee in its report reminded that Accounting Officer that all unspent amounts should be refunded to the Consolidate Fund and expenditures should be met from the appropriated sum.

MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS
FOR THE YEAR END 31 DEC 2005
The PAC in its report said that with regard to the Auditor General’s findings that there were:
1. 41 instances where breaches of Tender Board Procedures were observed
2. 5 payments amounting to $2.720 million for which Ministerial Tender Board approvals were not seen
3. 28 payments valued at $2.245 million subdivided to avoid adjudication to the Departmental Tender Board
4. 8 payments totaling $703,050, which exceeded the limit of $600,000 and should have had the approval of the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board
5. And 9 payment vouchers valued at $7.074 million which had no supporting documents attached to verify accuracy and validity of the transactions.

MORE TO COME: Fuel for Regional administration’s generators’ provided electricity to private homes for a fee, Contractors paid without physical examination done, resulting in overpayment, 300 meters purchased for Hinterland area still in store and Magistrates used $700000 in taxis for out of town duties.

Public accounts part deux

PUBLIC ACCOUNTS SCRUTINY CONTINUES:

THE FOLLOWING IS NOT A FIGMENT OF SOMEONE’S IMAGINATION BUT TAKEN FROM THE REPORT OF THE PUBLIC ACCOUNTS COMMITTEE FOR THE YEARS 2004 AND 2005.
CONSOLIDATED FUND

The Public Accounts Committee said that it noticed that even though the Consolidated Fund was opened there was still an UNRECONCILED balance in the account the findings reported that there were difference between the bank account balances reported in the Statement of the Current Assets and Liabilities of the Government and that in the records of the Bank of Guyana. According to the records of the Bank, the new Consolidated Fund account reflected a positive balance of $6.459 billion as at 31 December 2004, compared to a negative balance of $6.153 billion noted by the bank.

In addition, the total bank account balances of other ministries and departments amounted to a negative balance of $8.446 billion, compared to a positive balance of $10.907 billion as reported on the statement.

The Committee reports that according to Section 73(2) of the FMA Act, the Finance Minster is required to prepare a Statement of Contingent Liabilities which forms a component of the annual consolidated financial statements. The Act also defines a contingent liability as “a future commitment, usually to spend public monies which is dependent upon the happening of a specified event or the materialization of a specified circumstance”.

The Committee in its report said that DESPITE previous recommendations that liabilities for entities that are no longer in existence be transferred to the Public Debt, IT IS DISAPPOINTING to note that at the time of reporting in March 2006, NO ACTION was taken on the matter. The report said too that it should be noted that the statement submitted was not prepared in accordance to the ACT.

The PAC said too that according to the Statement of Receipts and Payments of the Contingencies Fund for the year end 31 December 2005, total payments of the Fund amounted to $5.865 billion, compared with $2.647 billion in 2004, an increase of $3.218 billion. Total Receipts from the Consolidated Fund amount to $5.856 billion as against $1.188 billion in 2004 an increase of $4.668 billion. This gives an excess of payments over receipts of $9 million.

Of the payments made from the Contingencies Fund for the period under review, 25 totaling $1.468 billion remained outstanding as at 31 December 2005.

The Report also noted that 19 ADVANCES totaling $37.634 million granted during the period 1986 to 1996 were still outstanding as of the 31 December 2005. At the time when the matter was reported to the Public Accounts Committee, the nature of the 19 advances could not be determined.
The Report said that during the time period involved and that fact that there was no financial reporting during the period 1986-1991, it was not possible to ascertain how the amounts were expended for the purpose of replenishing the Fund.

The Public Accounts Committee in its meetings over the 2004 and 2005 periods scrutinized the records of Ministries, Departments and Regional bodies.
In its Report the Committee noted that there were a number of bodies including ministries that still breached the Financial Regulations.

To be continued...

The GT&T scapegoat

A monopoly that is shaking and toppling over - a breath of relief for Guyana.

The building of a new era is being heralded by the opening up of the telecommunications sector. The Government of Guyana has promised to liberalize the economy and is delivering on this - even if it is the only thing they do.

While the opposition is scratching their privates, the dolphin expert who holds mining concessions and received US$$$ to bring in the red company is now the Government expert on telecommunication. Of course he is the expert as he held the US$ payoff and he made good on the Red store at the airport.

Report of the Public Accounts Committee

Report of the Public Accounts Committee on the Public Accounts for the years 2004 and 2005.

This report was recently submitted to the National Assembly. The Report started by listing some of the general problems it observed in the government’s financial management. The Committee said that during its deliberation of the 2004 and 2005 Auditor General’s reports, a number of general problems which adversely affected the financial management system were identified.

Those problems included:
1. OVERPAYMENT OF CONTRACTORS
2. BREACH OF TENDER BOARD PROCEDURES
3. LACK OF MAINTENANCE OF LOGBOOKS
4. NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE STIPULATED TIMEFRAME FOR THE CLEARING OF CHEQUE ORDERS
5. CAPITAL EXPENDITURE BEING MET FROM CURRENT ALLOCATIONS
6. WRONGFUL PAYMENTS OF SALARIES AND CONSEQUENTIAL DEDUCTIONS PAID TO AGENCIES
7. OUTSTANDING POLICE REPORTS
8. ABUSE OF EXTRA BUGETARY FUNDS
9. VARIATION ON CONTRACTS
10.HIGH COST OF MAINTAINING VEHICLES

OVERPAYMENT FOR CONTRACTORS
The report says that a number of ministries and regions continued to have make overpayments on contracts. The PAC in its report said that it has noted that some ministries and regions have made progress on this issue but some continued to be delinquent.
These included the Ministries of:
1. Agriculture
2. Public Works and Communications and
3. Health
And Regions 1-3, 6, 7, 9 and 10.

BREACH OF TENDER BOARD PROCEDURES
There were various levels of non-compliance with the existing Tender Board Regulations relating to the procurement of goods and services and the undertaking of works, both capital and current by a number of agencies for the years 2004 and 2005, particularly where it relates to compliance with Tender Limits. In view of the fact that the last increase in Tender Board Limits was in November 2004 via the Procurement Regulations, the Committee recommends that the Tender Board limits be increased in the light of current prices.

LACK OF MAINTENANCE OF LOG BOOKS
The PAC is in report said that it noted that during the two years the control and use of government vehicles continued to be very lax resulting in log books not being kept or not being satisfactorily maintained. These agencies were found to be delinquent:
The Ministries of:
1. Agriculture
2. Education
3. Labour, Human Services and Social Security and
4. Home Affairs
5. The Guyana Defence Force and
6. Regions 1-6 and 8

While the Committee recommended that Accounting Officers ensure that log books are maintained and closed at the end of the year, the agencies continued to ignore these.

NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THE STIPULATED TIMEFRAME FOR THE CLEARING OF CHEQUE ORDERS
All ministries, departments and regions are required to clear cheque orders with 16 days from when they are issues but there was an inability to do so and this was prevalent in
The ministries of:
1. Agriculture
2. Public Works and Communications
3. Education
4. The Guyana Defence Force and
5. Regions 1, 2, 4, 6, 9 and 10.
I

CAPITAL EXPENDITURE BEING MET FROM CURRENT ALLOCATION
While all amounts budgeted are required to be expended in keeping with that which was approved by the National Assembly, the PAC noted that a in a number of instances where the Auditor General reported that Ministries, Departments and Regions were funding activities of a capital nature from amounts approved for the Current Expenditure.
This forced the Committee to recommend that they:
Collaborate with the Finance Ministry with the aim of determining or differentiating current from capital purchases/works and also adhere strictly to the regulations whenever a need exist to make capital purchases from current allocations.

WRONGFUL PAYMENTS OF SALARIES AND CONSEQUENTIAL DEDUCTIONS PAID TO AGENCIES
The PAC report says that the slow processing of pay change directives in several ministries and mainly in the Regions results in wrongful payment of salaries to employees after they had resigned and the consequential deductions being paid to various agencies without the necessary adjustments made to the payroll and the Ministries and Regions not being able to recover such sums or any at all expeditiously.
This was especially prevalent with respect to the employment of Teachers.
It was also noted by Auditor General that this state of affairs also resulted in these Ministries, Departments and Regions recording overstatements on their Appropriation Accounts as a result of the deductions being paid over to various agencies and the Ministries and Regions not being able to recover such sums.

In 2005 the PAC recommended that:
To strengthen the mechanism to expedite the flow of information from various schools/ministries so that the necessary adjustments could be made to the payroll in a timelier manner; that the Accountings officers should seek to discuss with the National Insurance Scheme and the Guyana Revenue Authority the possibility of crediting the amounts overpaid to the respective ministry, department or region’s account; and in instances where the Accounting Officers attempt to recover sums from the agencies proved futile they should seek to bring the matter to the attention of their subject minister.

OUTSTANDING POLICE REPORTS
The Committee in its report said that it is gravely concerned about the number of issues concerning the loss of public property which are currently with the police and have not been resolved or which were pending in the courts. It said that a number of issues are in relation to the Supreme/Magistrate Courts and are dated as far back as 1992 while others were during 2004 and 2005.

The PAC recommends that Accounting Officers: seek the advice of the Head of the Budget Agency, Home Affairs Ministry where matters were with the police and have long been outstanding; seek the advice of the Attorney General with a view of bringing closure to the court matters and where discrepancies and fraud were discovered actions should be taken and developed to avoid recurrences.


On January 1 2004, the Procurement Act 2003 became operational. This act provides for the regulation of the procurement of goods, services and the execution of works, to promote competition among suppliers and contractors and to promote fairness and transparency in the procurement process. Regulations for this Act were also made and came into operation on the 29 November 2004. However, although the Procurement Act to date has assisted in some instances in addressing the numerous concerns the Committee had over the years, it was noted at the time of the report: THE PUBLIC PROCUREMENT COMMISSION PROVIDED FOR BY THE ACT HAD STILL NOT BEEN ESTABLISHED AND THE PAC RECOMMENDED THAT THE ISSUE BE RESOLVED.
The PAC expressed concern of possible collusion between contractors and officials at certain agencies and recommended that:
1. Accounting officers should ensure that there are proper systems for the verification of works to be done and that ministries needed to ensure independent verification.
2. Not only contractors should be held accountable for sums overpaid but also the officer who certified the payment of such sums and
3. The Accounting officer should inform the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board of the names of the contractors and the amount overpaid with a view of preventing those contractors who were requested to repay overpaid amounts and failed to do so from obtaining future jobs or to assist in the recovery of over paid amounts from subsequent contracts.
4. Accounting officers should employ a mechanism within their building/engineering departments to improve the verification f projects to ensure accountability

MORE TO COME !!!

Overseas vote

The filing of a Constitutional Motion maybe the next step to blocking Local and General Elections and securing an extension in the Presidential office for another two years. We have been reliability informed that two overseas based Guyanese are preparing to file this motion through some lawyers in the local courts. This motion seeks to have challenge the lack of system for overseas voting and among their arguments would be that they have been disenfranchised by lack of such a system.

The chief culprits behind this act?

1.The man who recently wrote an article in the Mirror about overseas based Guyanese need to vote is the one touted to be drafting the legal arguments.

2. The man who has been saying that he will never agree to a third term but whose emoluments have increased significantly and will continue to do so in the up coming years.

3. The power drunk visitor to Guyana who has been denying that he will stay in that office.

The repercussions ?

Well the Guyana Elections Commission will have to stall its programme for the holding of Local Government Elections until the Court matter has been heard.

It will also in the mean time to have start registration of overseas based Guyanese.

The Country will have to wait until that process is over before Local and General Elections could proceed.

Given our court system and the back log who knows when this matter will be heard !

TheTaylors - a true story

It has been more than two years since an American Couple and their son was chased out of the Rupununi. The scenario of a morning…while at their abode in Yupukari in the Rupununi, an armed vanload of police arrives and asked them to accompany them to Lethem. They could not pack but were told to walk with passports. But they did not stop in Lethem, they were driven all the way to the City and to the Immigration Department where they were told its to either ‘leave or be deported’
But what was the reason for this act?

Many Government officials have posited a number of reasons, most of these were never uttered in the public domain but were spoken under their breaths when they were asked about the Taylors.

Among they reasons were that Peter Taylor was working with the CIA, they couple were spies, they couple were anti-government and the last but not least was that they were pumping money into a village that was anti-government. A public comment posted on their website www.rupununi learners.org was another reason for the government’s attention. That comment which was taken from the Poverty Reduction Strategy Report spoke of Amerindians being deprived of certain essential services but was later removed from the site after a meeting with government officials.

Initially Peter Taylor came in 2005 to study Black Caimans where he then set up set up the Caiman Research Field Station. He was later joined by his wife Alice.
But with the arrival of Alice Taylor it was evident that the small Amerindian Village with about 500 people had little to do. Her plan was to encourage the development of new jobs, tourism and education.

Her activism overseas won the Community school libraries, internet free libraries and saw the establishment of a non-profit organization Yupukari Crafters which was set up to create jobs and sustain development.

But while Peter’s study was flourishing with information on Black Caimans it may have been Alice’s ‘philanthropy actions’ that may have brought the government’s attention to them.

Her downfall in trying to help the village could lie in some statements she made while doing an interview with the New Canaan Advertiser.

In that interview Alice said that she felt the need to improve education in the village the moment she walked into classrooms. She said that for the exception of a blackboard and some tables, the classroom had only one text book and the children only had one small exam booklet for the year’s duration and pens because the government did not supply pencil sharpeners. She said also that the textbooks, lessons and exams were still in English when the primary language of village including teachers was Macushi.

The most explosive statement some said it when Alice said that she ‘hopes to help the Amerindians become self-sufficient and politically active in their own country’
To date little is being said about the Taylors or their contribution to Yupukari. While the Rupununi Foundation and Rupununi Learners Corporation continue to do work locally the Taylors are said to be blacklisted from entering the country. There is information that Caiman House Field Station work has continued but under the watchful eye of the government who sent the Tourism Minister there some time ago to check on the operations.

Appeals to for the Taylors’ return to Guyana and to help continue with several of the projects fell on deaf ears. These appeals sent as far as the Head of State and the Minister of Amerindian Affairs Carolyn Rodrigues. There are recordings of the Minister meeting a group of Amerindians from the village where she verbally abused them asking them why they encouraged the Taylors in the village and asking them if they know what embarrassment they have brought the government. There is also a reported encounter with the President at his home, State House. It was reported that after several attempts to visit the President at his office the small group led by the Village Toshao was forced to show up at State House. There the Head of State greeted them but when they told them they were from Yupukari his demeanor changed and he asked them to leave. He later asked for the Toshao (who knows little English) to meet him and the Minister of Amerindian Affairs but little is known about that meeting.

Caiman House still operates but with minimal activities and under the watchful eye of the government. Books and other school supplies shipped to the Taylors for the village is still in containers at a wharf.

Those persons who accompany Jagdeo

Who are the people that accompany Jagdeo on his trips?

1) Brassing Blackoutman a) Brassin Blackoutman went on trips. He is the head of NICIL. This is the only entity that receives money from various sources without any accounting or reporting to treasury, Finance or parliament. More than 24 Billion $ have been paid into NICIL.How much has been paid over to the consolidated fund?

b) We wonder if hen is affiliated in anyway with the brassington that is associated with the russian mafia. See this link for this scoop http://www.madcowprod.com/08062009.htm. if we assume that the above is false, the further disclosure is needed: Who really owns the island in Essequibo and how was it acquired? Who sold/leased it to whom and what transparent process was followed?

2) Gerrymandering Goveya. Now the bigger owner of prime, previously-government-owned properties.

3) Ed Buyer: The best and most recent recipient of prime property.

4) Dr. Queensman of the Atlantic. This may well be the biggest beneficiary of government property, legal gifts and prepaid contracts.
a) The owner of a television station and newspaper, soon to be owner of a cable network compliments of GoG. Soon to be telecoms owner, of-course non-commercial.

Closing question: what is the link between the russian mafia, the surinamese elections, Chavez and Jagdeo? (Hint: 45million USD).

AFC is Wrong on Jagdeo's trippps

The AFC is totally out of whack in its assessment of the cost of Jagdeo's tripps overseas. We aree going to analyze the cost benefit of these trips as follows:

According to the AFC release the trippps' cost are accumulated at $1Billion.

Let is add 10% interest over avg 2-and-a-half yrs, that brings us to 1.25billion.
Lets add 10% opportunity cost (money usable elsewhere)and 500% loss (being out of office and not assenting to laws or other work in a timely fashion.

Total = $7 BILLION

Now, lets add his gains on the trips like per diem (if any), salary received during this time, the excess staff accompanying his (their salaries etc), total now is approx $10 billion.

How much did he TRY to write off this last trip? Was it 50mil USD? That is approx $10billion G$....

Some further questions:
1) Who pays for the private sector and personal friends that accompany Jagdeo on his trips? This latest trip to Russia included the Queens Atlantic owner.
2) Who approves the persons that accompany jagdeo?
3) Who costs the private accomplishment of these individuals on these tripps?

More to come later.

More on Trippps & Deals

The recent three trips of the President is clouded in conspiracy.

On one hand Jagdeo announced his own cable which initially was supposed to be non-commercial but is now touted as "the cable that will bring prices down" therefore clearly commercial.(J)

Then, the likelihood that Quack or Brassman will have the management contract for the cable - link this to Brassman's trip to Iran.(W)

Then, the making of a third telephone operator - link this to the Qai Doctor trip to Russia. (B)

It seems like there is a clear plan emerging for telecommunications in Guyana that will be owned by the triumvirate (JBW).

Finally in this post we see that the Qai doctor is to do cable TV soon starting in berbice. Is this based on the e-governance brazilian-venezuelean-surinamese-russian cable that will be non-commercially giving him the connection to do his thing across country?

Trips and Deals

Numerous letters have been written to the press on Jagdeo trippps. Not many writers are aware of the people that have accompanied Jadgeo on his trippps especially the more recent ones.

1) The trippp to Iran was with the Blackout Brassman, whose brother will work with the GoG to set up the e-governance system in Guyana.

2) The trippp to Surinam: the secret meetings to map out communications strategies that would link venezuela's Chavez with Bouterse in Surinam with the Russians.

3) Finally the trippp to Russia to iron out the financing of the commmunicaiton deal with Bourterse, Chavez and the Russians.

4) This trippp to Russia - who accompanied the president? None other than the owner of the Queens Atlantic. This is the guy on whose behalf the Government changed Guyana's laws to facilitate his business. Guess what other businessman went to Russia with them?

Is there more to these Iran, Surinam, Russia trips? Are we all missing something here?

The Green Green Grass of Home - Part III

From the miners' articles on the subject matter, we find that the monies paid for licensing etc is almost equivalent to the amount that Guyana is getting from Norway.

In the meantime, we also find that the president has granted mining concessions to his officers of the Government. The shady Lumumber deal smacks of the usual arrogance the so-called head of state has for laws of the country as he shares out concessions to his favorite boys.

In the meantime, we also wonder about the three concessions that the bent minister's wife is supposedly to have and to have signed documents for. This latest development is a clear case of more corruption on the part of the 'concessionaire'

The Green Green Grass of Home - Part II

Continuing from the previous Article, we use the “Seeing REDD” by Tom Griffiths of the Forest Peoples Programme:

1)March 2008: investment firm Canopy Capital and Global Canopy Programme (GCP) signed a preliminary agreement with the Iwokrama International Centre for Rainforest Conservation and Development. Under this deal, Canopy Capital will help finance the rainforest protected area for 5 years in return for ‘ownership’ of forest ecosystem services and a claim in any future profits.

2)The new saleable asset would involve carbon values and possibly rainfall, water storage, soil conservation, biodiversity, climate buffer and watershed values.

3) Canopy Capital aims to try and establish a best-practice model, protocol and standards for global profit-driven market-based payments for forest Ecosystem Services (ESS) and to create a stepping stone to a national scheme in Guyana and ultimately a global market in environmental services.

4)At this stage, Canopy Capital is exploring options for marketing ecosystem services through an ‘Ecosystem Service Certificate’ attached to a 10-year tradable bond.

5)The company advises that interest from such bonds could help pay for the maintenance of the Iwokrama forest.

6)Canopy Capital has a commitment to measure and value forest ecosystem services and to develop a financial and legal instrument to market ecosystem services. If this is achieved and sales of services are possible, then the investment company will have a major stake in any financial returns. How benefits would be shared between Canopy Capital, Iwokrama and local communities is not clear as the CC-IIC agreement remains confidential.

WEAK CONSULTATION
1) Canopy Capital and its legal advisers admit that the deal was not adequately discussed with the implicated communities but just discussed and agreed with the Board of Iwokrama, which has one community representative.

2)The community of Fairview that has titled lands within the Reserve was not consulted directly and communities that use the reserve and have never surrendered their ancestral ownership over the area were not directly involved.

3)Asked about why the deal had been shrouded in secrecy, Canopy Capital and Iwokrama advise that for reasons of ‘commercial confidentiality’ it was not possible to broadcast the issue before the deal was done and for this reason also the agreement remains confidential.

The Green Green Grass of Home - Part I

The Green Green Grass of Home: our Guyana's forests have been sold, politicized and raped. This Green Baby is being ripped apart by the careless and selfish actions of the Government of Guyana.

In this series we present the summaries of various articles presented by different writers on the subject.

This is an extract from REDD-Monitor, 3rd December 2008
1) Iwokrama scheme was originally set up in 1996, at a time when Guyana’s President Cheddi Jagan was keen to prop up his country’s flagging international credibility.

2) It was intended as a visionary and self-sustaining new scheme to balance conservation with sustainable rainforest use and provide world-class facilities for scientific research.

3) The economics of the scheme were never sound. Having built a large centre and employed numerous staff, it has always relied heavily on support from donors and, increasingly, the revenue from logging operations, which have now been allocated across half the area’s 370,000 hectares. By 2007, the scheme was effectively out of cash, and in search of new forms of income.

4) In 2008, Canopy Capital, in the form of Hylton Murray-Philipson, a former banker, and Andrew Mitchell, a rainforest canopy scientist and founder of the Global Canopy Programme. Canopy Capital contracted with the government of Guyana to ‘buy’ the ‘ecosystem services’ of the area, for an as-yet undisclosed sum.

5) Murray-Philipson and Mitchell have also been close advisors to the Rainforest Project of Prince Charles, who has been Royal Patron of the Iwokrama project since 2001.

7) Murray-Philipson said in an interview with Mongabay.com,“If you can’t make something work in Guyana, I’m not sure you are going to ever make it work anywhere.”

8)There may be more truth to this than he realises. On the basis of what has happened at Iwokrama so far, the precedent for these kinds of projects in terms of transparency, respect for indigenous rights, and consultation, is not very promising.

Belated Happy New Year

Belated happpy new year to all!

Let's march on to a better Guyana.