Linking CLICO to Globe Trust

President Jagdeo’s insistence on the linking of a probe of CLICO (Guyana) to one of Globe Trust is unacceptable and reveals the most cynical application of political manoeuvring.

By linking the two potential probes, President Jagdeo is acknowledging that there was/is ground for an investigation of Globe Trust. If in his own deliberate judgement he felt that a probe should have been conducted then he is six or seven years too late in floating the possibility of one. If there is still room for such an investigation then by all means it should be done. Many Globe Trust depositors and stakeholders had over the years also called for such an investigation. President Jagdeo should have been sensitive to such calls and long ordered a probe of the Globe Trust debacle as there have been searing, unanswered questions about the quality of the Bank of Guyana’s supervision of Globe Trust and the actions of the directors and managers of this failed institution.

Those questions have not gone away. As a matter of fact they have remained in the public eye and been refocused on in recent weeks as the appointed liquidator has outlined the severe difficulties in collecting outstanding Globe Trust debts. Many small depositors remain out of pocket and President Jagdeo’s promise to them has been resurrected. There is yet the possibility that legal action will be taken against Gobe Trust officials who may have breached their fiducial obligations.

By linking these two probes, President Jagdeo is engaging in political horse-trading. It is clear that he recognizes that his government’s handling of the CLICO (Guyana) fiasco will prove embarrassing. Moreover, a clinical investigation of CLICO (Guyana) could also reveal in stark detail the transactions between CLICO (Guyana) and the New Building Society and the thus far hidden surrenders when the run on the company was in full swing in February. Other details as it relates to CLICO (Guyana) and the National Insurance Scheme may also come to the fore.

From all that has been said thus far, it seems that President Jagdeo and his government do not have an appetite for such a probe and this has led to the linkage gambit. President Jagdeo believes that a probe of Globe Trust could prove politically embarrassing for the main PNCR so he is banking on the party opposing such a linkage. He may be unpleasantly surprised.

It would be the easiest thing for the opposition to call his bluff and agree to a linking of CLICO (Guyana) and Globe Trust. That would however be unprincipled as there is a clear need for an unconditional, comprehensive investigation of what went on at CLICO (Guyana) particularly as the Government of Guyana has committed itself to bailing out the company.

The President is unfortunately treating this subject as if he is in hard-nosed negotiations with the opposition over some political issue – like how many seats the opposition should have on a state board or how many minutes of access on state TV. CLICO (Guyana) is a much different matter. It relates to bread and butter for thousands of Guyanese – those who stand to lose if the companies assets cannot be adequately monetized to cover its liabilities and those who will ultimately have to foot the cost of the bail out of a company whose slipshod management and investment practices here, in Trinidad and across the Caribbean are daily coming to the fore. These are not matters to be trifled with or to be balanced on the altar of political convenience. Otherwise there can be a whole series of absurd permutations – no Roger Khan probe unless we unravel `Taps’, no probe of procurement practices unless we investigate the purchase of the barge and the possibilities are endless and obtuse. A probe of CLICO (Guyana) must be conducted. End of story.

There is also no reason why the present application before the court for the possible winding up of  CLICO (Guyana) should preclude or be prejudiced by a parallel investigation of the practices of CLICO (Guyana) which led to financial catastrophe – particularly the lodging of an investment with CLICO (Bahamas).

There is no good reason for the government to stall on a probe of the company and we hope that good sense prevails.