A month ago, a letter writer in the Guyana Chronicle made false claims upon which he accused me and other members of civil society of being treasonous and betraying the country. I enclose the link to that letter (see below writer’s name), which was also published in the Guyana Times. I wrote a response, which…
President of Guyana David Granger Wednesday acknowledged that American oil company ExxonMobil had paid over US$18 million as a signing bonus to his government. It confirmed a disclosure by the oil company last weekend, but Granger said that his administration had not meant to deceive the Guyanese about the payment. “It is a legitimate government…
The onus was on Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman to tell President David Granger that he would be breaking the law if the US$18M bonus went anywhere else but to the Consolidated Fund, commentator and civil society activist Melinda Janki says. For his role in allowing the illegal act of placing the money into…
Every Man, Woman and Child Must Become Oil-Minded (Part 97) – June 17, 2022 It is more than five months since the 96th. column was published on January 22nd. of this year. That column summarised the court action brought by citizen Glenn Lall seeking declarations against the tax provisions contained in the 2016 Petroleum Agreement….
I thank Dr. Vishnu Bisram for pointing out an economic approach towards distributive justice in managing oil wealth in Suriname: ‘“Royalties for Everyone”, on the decision by the government of Suriname to grant a savings note (royalty shareholding certificate) of US$750 to each of its citizens, payable after 2028 with 7% interest and a contrast…
Every Man, Woman and Child in Guyana Must Become Oil-Minded – Part 81 – January 3, 2020 Introduction This column should have continued my take on Local Content. I will defer this to a later piece so that I do not miss the very focus on this series: the Road to First Oil. Readers will…
We don’t need to hear about the personal sacrifices of politicians during past political campaigns or the hardships of being a leader, especially when such inflated speech is used as a means to defend the worst contract ever agreed upon, if opportunity losses to Guyana are computed on a per capita basis in the Production…
The previous six columns asked the question whether Guyana could escape the natural resource curse. We have looked at the issue from various dimensions. In particular, we have observed that initial conditions prevailing in Guyana must be taken into account when making such a prediction. The present structure of the production economy and limited economic…
Every Man, Woman and Child in Guyana Must Become Oil-Minded – Column 119 – January 09, 2024 Introduction On the occasion of the first column for 2024, I extend best wishes to readers for an informed and productive year and realisation of the hope of a fairer contract. Readers will recall the promise made in…
The work done by the consortium of auditing firms, Ramdihal& Haynes Inc., Eclisar Financial, and Vitality Accounting and Consultancy Inc., with backing from Martindale Consultants, have identified the unauthorized expenditures that have inflated the costs of the EMGL financial statements. In particular, the auditors point out the unlawful disbursement of funds from the Liza 1…
