We must all express our gratitude and appreciation to Mr. Christopher Ram for disclosing that the Government was in receipt of a signing bonus of US$20 million from ExxonMobil. When the matter was brought to the fore in the media, Government officials vehemently denied the existence of such a transaction, one of whom contended that “it was a figment of imagination”. It has since been confirmed that the Government did receive a signing bonus. However, the only compensation it is entitled to, for the grant of a petroleum licence, is in relation to the licence and other fees, royalty on production, and a share of the profits based on any Production/Profit Sharing Agreement. Any payment to the Government outside of these cannot be considered legitimate and should be rejected.
Since the agreement is between the Government and ExxonMobil, the signing bonus once received is considered public money or public revenue. As such, it should have been paid over to the Consolidated Fund in accordance with Article 216 of the Constitution and Section 38 of the Fiscal Management and Accountability Act. The only exception relates to funds to the credit of an Extra-Budgetary Fund created by an Act of Parliament. However, no such fund has been created. This Column is therefore of the view that the money should be returned to ExxonMobil, and the bank account at the Bank of Guyana closed. In the defence of our territorial integrity, we must be prepared to use our own resources, and not depend on handouts from entities that do business with us. When the latter happens, a dangerous precedent is set, and we risk compromising ourselves.
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