Chris Ram

The presidency is the most sacred office in our Republic – its occupant sworn to uphold the Constitution and to serve all the people without fear or favour. Under President Ali, that office has been diminished – through evasion, manipulation, and a style of governance that rewards loyalty over merit, secrecy over transparency, and partisanship…

Every Man, Woman and Child Must Become Oil-Minded Part 159 1. Overview Earlier this week ExxonMobil Guyana Limited (EMGL) summoned the Guyana press to the launch of its 2024 Annual Report. Two conditions: only questions on the financial statements would be entertained and the number of questions strictly restricted. Like one of its junior partners…

Introduction On May 17, 2025, the National Assembly passed the Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response, and Responsibility Bill on a voice vote. The bill’s thirtyseven clauses and three schedules were considered en bloc, meaning that no clauseby-clause examination was conducted. One wonders whether the Speaker or the Mover of the bill wanted to avoid a…

I strongly support Attorney-at-Law Melinda Janki’s appeal to President Irfaan Ali, as reported in yesterday’s Stabroek News, not to give presidential assent to the rushed Oil Pollution Prevention, Pre-paredness, Response and Responsibility Bill. Ms. Janki, who regularly provides high-value public service to Guyana, provided a strong case on why the legislation contravenes Guyana’s international legal…

Every Man, Woman and Child in Guyana Must Become Oil-Minded – Column 157 Introduction Amid concerns about unresolved audit issues, mysterious tax certificates and controversial oil spill legislation, Hess Exploration Limited, a branch of a Hess subsidiary incorporated in the Cayman Islands, is the first of the Stabroek Block partners to lodge audited financial statements….

GEORGETOWN, GUYANA – May 16, 2025 – In an unprecedented legal challenge, Attorney-at-law Christopher Ram today filed Guyana’s first judicial review action under the Access to Information Act 2011, directly confronting Commissioner Charles R. Ramson Sr.’s systematic refusal to enforce the nation’s transparency laws. The High Court case represents the first attempt to compel compliance…

Every Man, Woman and Child in Guyana Must Become Oil-Minded – Column 156 As feared, the Government ignored calls to refer the Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response, and Responsibility Bill to a Select Committee and advanced it to a second reading and passage. Listening to the exchange in the National Assembly yesterday, it was entertaining…

Every Man, Woman and Child in Guyana Must Become Oil-Minded – Column 155 The National Assembly is scheduled to meet today, as the 12th Parliament moves to a close in preparation for historic elections. The Prime Minister will lead the second reading of the Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Responsibility Bill tabled last week….

I write to make an urgent appeal to the Speaker of the National Assembly, the Leader of the House, the Leader of the Opposition, and the Prime Minister regarding the Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Responsibility Bill 2025, tabled by the Prime Minister last Friday. This legislation represents one of the most critical environmental…

I write to share the latest information on Guyana’s dismal state of transparency and right to information.  On April 14, 2025, on behalf of a group of civil society organisations and individuals, I wrote the President, who holds the Portfolio for Information, requesting a meeting regarding the Office of the Commissioner of Information’s failures: no…