Georgetown, Guyana. April 8, 2022
The PPP Government continues to use disinformation and outright lies to hide from the Guyanese people the true status of the IHS Markit Audit regarding expenses claimed by Exxon and its partners for period
1999 to 2017.
Through obviously excellent investigative work, Stabroek News managed to obtain this Audit Report and has been publishing its findings. Stabroek News must be congratulated for this and all Guyana is grateful.
We now know that the PPP Government was handed the Audit Report since March 2021 and must have known that expenses in the minimum quantifiable sum of $214M were questionable; that Exxon was in breach of insurance requirements; and, that there were violations by Exxon and its local subsidiary in presenting its Annual Work Plan and Budget.
The AFC has been indicating for sometime now that the PPP Government has become strange bedfellows with Exxon in view of the serious attacks it launched whilst in Opposition against the Petroleum Sharing Agreement in 2016; and, its description that it was the “rottenest of deals”; and, that it will renegotiate and review the entire agreement once it gets into office.
It has gotten into office and there has been a complete volte fas. Sanctity of contract has now replaced renegotiation. Its relationship with the oil major is now almost incestuous. The PPP has avoided chastising Exxon for environmental violations concerning flaring activities; for contract violations concerning insurance coverage; and now, a pathetic display of covering up from the Guyanese public the reprehensible conduct revealed by IHS Markit as to the operator’s inflated expenditures of some $214M
US.
The AFC via its Executive members, Dr. Vince Adams, and its Parliamentarian, David Patterson, have constantly been urging Government for the release of findings of this IHS Markit Report as well as the Redford Report. The PPP Government has been hiding them from the people. It reveals the true nature of this corrupt and lawless Executive.
With inflated expenses to the tune of $214M and Government doing nothing for two years means that Guyana and its people have been denied a minimum of US$25M. When a little black or coolie boy snatches your chain valued $25,000 that is called larceny. But when a transnational giant denies the entire Guyana this massive sum of $25 M US it is called economics.
In view of the Audit Report being out by way of Stabroek News, it is incumbent that the PPP Government releases it for public consumption and Parliamentary deliberations.
The AFC always knew that accountability and transparency were
never the hallmarks of the PPP. We further feel that some Faustian deal has been worked out between Govt. and Exxon to not renegotiate the Agreement nor scrutinize Cost Oil. In consideration, Exxon will grant to the PPP Government monies at the beck and call and whim and fancy of the Government, like recently happened in the matter of the Stadium at Corentyne.
This will only lead to a deformed accountability and transparency system and a bypass of the Constitutional and Statutory framework prescribed for public monies. This is yet another bypass similarly contrived by the PPP and its General Secretary, Bharat Jagdeo, to neutralize Presidential term limits to two terms and no more. Jagdeo as we all know is serving a third term via the instrumentality of his commanding Vice Presidency.The AFC maintains that the earlier Jagdeo goes, the better for all Guyana. He is the undoubted architect of these deformities and vulgarities. Additionally, the Government’s explanation coming from Jagdeo yesterday is a corrupt explanation. It certainly does not explain why once the report was issued as a final version, it was not made available to the public.
IHS Markit is a top notch international company out of the UK dealing with information, analytics, audits and solutions in business. It is held in high esteem by the World Economic Forum.
END
 |
Virus-free.www.avg.com |
Comments are closed