Dear Editor,
Newell Dennison and others in GGMC should start spilling the beans on all these suspicious actions by politicians and companies, which may have defrauded the ordinary people of billions of US$.
Such actions of disclosure might be viewed as very patriotic, and might be remembered for steering Guyana away from its nasty exploitative past with natural resources. What has all the gold, hardwood, etc done for the ordinary people, and now oil? This is a turning point for Guyana, and people need to choose between right and wrong, else we can say goodbye to the oil and forever be damned.
Look at former Minister Robert Persaud (PPP), and then we have Minister Trotman (Coalition Government). Is this stuff not blatant enough for ordinary citizens to comprehend, and when will people start to act like real citizens, with a responsibility to their children and grandchildren?
From the Global Witness report, on Robert Persaud:
“… Global Witness interviewed Persaud in July and August 2019 and asked him about the Kaieteur and Canje licenses. The former-minister said the awards were made based upon “briefing reports” prepared by GGMC lawyers. Asked who owned the winning companies, Persaud stated that he “did not know who the beneficial owners are” and that it was not necessary for him, as a minister, to know. He did, however, say he knew some of the people who had signed documents for the companies, such as Dookie.
Persaud has said he cannot provide the reports upon which he relied when awarding Kaieteur and Canje. Now out of government, Persaud stated that he did not have access to them. He also said he could not remember the names of who in the GGMC had prepared the documents.
The Kaieteur and Canje licenses were awarded just before an election to companies that appear to have little experience in oil production and which quickly sold shares in the blocks to Exxon. They were also awarded by a minister – Robert Persaud – who claims to be ignorant of legally-required information about the companies’ owners. …”
It seems the people of Guyana are choosing to ignore these give-aways of their own billions of US$, because they are choosing not to act.
Why is it justified to deprive your children and grandchildren of a prosperous and bright future because you are an Indo-Guyanese voter? Why is it justified to deprive your children and grandchildren of a prosperous and bright future because you are an Afro-Guyanese voter?
Yours faithfully,
Dr Jan Mangal
