Dear Editor,
The bold headline on page 21 of the Chronicle newspaper edition on October 24 reads: “Diwali: the celebration of darkness over ignorance”. Diwali is one of the world’s most beautiful festivals and the article itself was positive and informative about Diwali. Pity that no Editor picked up this headline before going to press.
The bizarre headline, notwithstanding it may be a typo writ large, speaks volumes about the current state of affairs in Guyana of ongoing violations in all spheres, onshore and offshore, of the rampant, no holds barred, ExxonMobil-GoG oil and gas operations. There are, therefore, a number of lawsuits in Guyana brought by citizens against Exxon and the GoG, the EPA and Schlumberger et al. It is of significance that just last week, the State of New Jersey in the USA filed a lawsuit against Exxon and other oil companies alleging they had known for decades about the harmful impact of fossil fuels on climate change but instead deceived the public about that link. A related article in SN (21.10.22) reports that the lawsuit seeks civil penalties and damages, including for damage to natural resources alleging that taxpayers will have to pay billions of dollars to protect communities from rising sea levels and other harmful effects and arguing that those costs should be paid by Exxon and the other oil companies cited.
In Guyana, there is a continuing and pervading darkness permeated by ignorance at the highest levels. There is a covering up and misrepresentation of science and related actions worldwide in stopping fossil fuels and vigorously phasing them out to save our planet and people from the destruction these are causing. This blanket of ignorance and darkness negatively impacts our viscerally divided nation politically, ethnically and economically. Darkness and ignorance is pervasive within Guyana Government’s ExxonMobil/EEPGL/SBM dominated oil and gas industry. This includes allegations of corruption, human rights/workers rights, inflation, and massive increases in cost of living, inadequate information, misinformation, lack of monitoring and breaches in laws and regulations by Agencies such as the EPA.
Pollution and warming of the ocean by daily discharges of produced water from the SBM operated FPSO(s) along with an accumulation of small, regular oil spills from the retrieval of oil from the drilling process, an accumulation of hazardous substances and radioactive sources in onshore facilities located in close proximity to residential areas, ongoing flaring and emissions of harmful gases into our air are all insufficiently monitored, reported or addressed. It is time for Guyana, as a whole, to see the light and to dispel the forces of darkness and ignorance taking its toll on our lives, livelihoods and environment.
We are hopeful that the enlightening forces of knowledge and science will prevail and that information, participation and truth by and from the people of Guyana, the full and only owners of all the oil and gas resources, which is our patrimony with its Constitutional safeguards, will light our pathway and roadmap showing the goalpost of renewable energy as a viable and essential alternative in the immediate future.
Yours truly,
Vanda Radzik
