Former Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy believes that the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and APNU/AFC Government have to quickly find a scapegoat to blame for the dismal sugar production in 2016.
He stated that they are in preparation mode to break the bad news of the poor production and to justify their plans to close sugar or to close some parts and privatise other parts.
Former Agriculture Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy
Ramsammy noted that while Wales and LBI Estates are already due for closure this year and other closures are expected in 2017, Skeldon is to be privatised in another sweetheart deal that is “similar to the public health warehouse deal”.
“APNU/AFC is now in full misinformation, distraction and blame mode. Professor Thomas, after praising Skeldon Sugar Factory at the end of 2015 and taking credit for an outstanding 2015 at Skeldon and the industry as a whole, announced last week that the Skeldon Factory is falling apart,” he said, highlighting that Government’s spokesperson Raphael Trotman is now blaming former President and present Opposition Leader Bharat Jagdeo and former President Ramotar for Skeldon’s and GuySuCo’s woes.
However, he stated that both Jagdeo and Ramotar, far from blaming Booker Tate, tried to remedy the problems and overcome the challenges. “They recognised sugar was facing major challenges like climate change, need for mechanisation, expansion, modernisation and diversification. They knew specifically Skeldon suffered from a design flaw, both in the construction of the new factory and in the land conversion for mechanisation and expansion,” he said, adding that they recognised the experts had not made proper adjustments for drainage and irrigation for expanded cultivation.
“This was trying to find solutions, not finding scapegoats,” he said further.
Ramsammy stated that when Booker Tate, which was the contractor responsible for factory design and completing land conversion, failed to take necessary corrective action, GuySuCo sued Booker Tate. “That was not idle blaming, it was holding Booker Tate accountable. They were paid, they needed to deliver. Skeldon was not the wrong decision; Booker Tate made mistakes in the designs, some of which were reckless,” he declared. He stated that Trotman, Professor Thomas, and others must explain why GuySuCo has not continued the legal action against Booker Tate. He questioned if it had anything to do with the fact that Booker Tate’s representative on the board was Errol Hanoman, who is now at GuySuCo.
“That GuySuCo, under instruction of APNU/AFC, is not pursuing accountability by Booker Tate is irresponsible and since Hanoman is now the CEO, it raises serious conflict of interest concerns,” he said, adding that Skeldon was the right investment decision to ensure sugar stays as a mainstay of Guyana’s economy into another century.
