Dear Editor,
In reading Dr. Jan Mangal’s reply to questions I posed to him in an earlier missive, I was pleasantly surprised about how many goals we have in common. We both view the award of the Canje and Kaieteur oil blocks as worthy of investigation based on the timing of the award and the announcement of the Liza discovery in the adjoining block. Where we differ is I am in favour of pragmatic action that can yield useful results, while Mangal would engage in fruitless rhetoric. I fully support any credible investigation that has as its goal, truth and consequence; should there be actionable evidence of corruption that can lead to the legal repossession of those blocks, it may well be a boon for the nation. Prosecution of the guilty party/parties in such instance is a must; hence my distrust of SARA as the investigating agency, lawyers may well find them an easier opponent than a reputable international firm.
Editor, I will reiterate that the award of contracts to TOTALTEC by ExxonMobil subsidiaries is worthy of inquiry, for much the same reasons as with the timing of oil block awards. The PPP General Secretary has openly made calls for an investigation into the oil block awards by a credible international firm and I would suggest that a similar call from Dr. Jan Mangal into the contracts won by his sibling’s company would also be welcome.
I do apologize to Dr. Mangal for my faulty research that placed him as an adviser to the President in 2016. Mea culpa. The new information that many Ministers did not want Dr. Mangal to advise or be involved in their dealings is par for the course in the APNU+AFC cabal, the claim that President Granger “took numerous positive actions with respect to oil” are yet to be evidenced by the public. The single fact that President Granger was seemingly unaware that the Production Sharing Agreement had been renegotiated renders him (Granger) unfit for the office he holds and aspires to retain, for it is obvious he was taken for a fool by those he trusted and yet there was no suitable reaction to such personal disrespect and betrayal of the public trust.
It is a rare occasion that I can say a letter to the editor has brought clarity to an issue and such commonality of purpose. Penchant for reliance on anecdotal innuendo aside, Dr. Jan Mangal seems to have much to offer his hometown and maybe he will be surprised by the willingness of a new administration to listen, accept and act on advice that benefits the nation and its people. I would suggest he examines how a country that suffered under the burden of 153% GDP to Debt ratio in 1992 and a bankrupt treasury, moved to a 42% GDP/Debt and $958 M USD reserves under the 23 years of PPP rule; that and the tens of thousands of homes and jobs created without the benefit of ‘oil’ tell a story no amount of oft repeated propaganda can counter. A comparison to the last four years where the GDP/Debt ratio has climbed to 58% and the reserves have fallen to $512 M USD will provide empirical evidence to counter the anecdotal statements served in the halls of the Ministry of the Presidency.
Yours faithfully,
Robin Singh
