Your Eyewitness just noticed a poll taken by some private US outfit – The World Justice Project (WJP) – on rule of law issues here between Aug 2018 and Aug 2022. Meaning the report’s split evenly between the PNC Granger’s last two years and the PPP Pres Ali’s first two. Now, your Eyewitness isn’t too sure about the agenda of the WJP, but he’ll give them the benefit of the doubt, and try to analyze their findings.
The “Key finding”, said a local newspaper, is that 69% of Guyanese people “believe that most or all members of political parties here are involved in corrupt practices”!! Now, right away, your Eyewitness knew something na regulah!! When it comes to the PERCEPTION of politicians having sticky fingers, if that number ain’t 100%, it’s either the respondents or the pollsters are mucking about. But there’s always gonna be the true believers who’ll swear THEIR party is as pure as freshly picked cotton!! Which appears to be 31% split down the line between PPP and PNC diehards!! The AFC?? Even their most fervent supporters couldn’t even pretend they aren’t corrupt!!
Then there were the findings on the performance of the three branches of Government. Interestingly, there was a 25% jump in those who felt that most judges and magistrates were corrupt!! Now, when did judges and magistrates muck about?? We know that between 2018 and 2022 there were those infamous political cases brought before the Courts by the desperate PNC Government – some involving simple mathematics – where some Courts suddenly couldn’t divide by two!! SOMETHING had to have clouded their minds!! So, your Eyewitness is OK with this.
They found that teachers are seen as the least corrupt actors in Guyana – but 36% think they’re involved in hanky-panky. Taking home chalk?? Accepting bribes for inflating grades?? Naah…not nowadays! Back in the Burnham days, teachers had to sell sweeties to schoolchildren to survive. Corruption then was rampant, since they didn’t teach the children to add or subtract, so they could bilk them easier!!
The most credible finding was: “More than half (59%) of Guyanese felt that top Government officials attack or attempt to discredit Opposition parties, attack or attempt to discredit the electoral system and other supervisory organs, seek to influence the promotion and removal of judges (58%), and prosecute and convict members of Opposition parties (58%)”!! Who could forget the PNC Government for trying to do just that – especially discredit the Opposition PPP after they lost the No Confidence Motion (NCM)!! And ripping down GECOM!
Uniform condemnation of the Police was expected, and looked kosher. But most incredulous was the claim that 57% of Guyanese believed the Government censors foreign news!! Ow man…not even the PNC!!!
…on management??
While the High Court ruling on the Exxon insurance and corporate coverage of the costs of any possible spill heads to our Appellate Court, notice has been taken by its most critical stakeholder – its shareholders!! The matter, of course, could impact significantly on the company’s bottom line, and corporate managers are sworn to protect shareholders’ values!! So, how are ExxonMobil’s shareholders –owners of the company – to consider the question?
They could either support management – which has now joined the appeal against requiring additional coverage over the present US$2billion insurance coverage – or take another position. In this age of environmental sensitivity, shareholders of the oil majors – especially the major institutional investors like Pension Funds – have sometimes marched to the beat of a different drummer than traditional management.
ExxonMobil’s Mission Statement has a clause that the interest of the client – in this case Guyana, which gave them the Production Sharing Agreement (PSA) – must also be taken into account for the future of both parties.
Well, we’ve entered the new globalized world – let’s get used to new globalized vision!!
…chicken prices
Nowadays, chicken prices aren’t chicken feed – which the producers say is the cause of recent price increases!! Then the Government ups and prohibits the importation of chicken – which Opposition Leader Norton says will hike prices further!!
So, who’ll be chicken??
