Persaud warns miners of anti-investors campaign after Muri pull out

Natural Resources Minister Robert Persaud yesterday put miners on notice about attempts to stymie potential investors in the industry, following the decision by Muri Brasil Ventures Inc to abandon its controversial surveying permit in the New River Triangle area.

“This may not be the only one,” Persaud told those in attendance at a special meeting of the Guyana Gold and Diamond Miners Association (GGDMA) at the Regency Hotel, where he warned that other companies in the sector may befall the same fate as Muri. “My question is who and what is next and that is what I want the sector to bear in mind. I am not trying to cause hysteria. I am not [being] an alarmist. I am being a realist,” he said, while urging those gathered against losing sight of “big issues” that could undermine the sector and its contribution to the economy.

Although President Donald Ramotar, who was the featured speaker at the meeting, used the opportunity to