Granger, Bynoe thumbing their collective noses at Guyanese

Dear Editor,
Guyana will receive four million barrels of ‘profit-oil’ in 2020; the Granger Administration has already sold three million of those in 2019. Granger has not bothered to hold a press conference and offer details. Given the importance of this event and the strident calls for transparency in all dealings with oil revenues, this is a troubling development. But there is worse news, as I write this; the Department of Energy is working feverishly to conclude an arrangement for the sale of all of Guyana’s profit-oil over the next five years. The deal reportedly involves payment of 0.75 per cent of all sales to a newly created London-based marketing company. 0.75 per cent may not sound like much but it will amount to over US$100 million over the next five years.
Mr Granger and Mr Bynoe are thumbing their collective noses at the Guyanese people with their continuing refusal to acknowledge that long-term deals cannot be entered into by a caretaker Government and the need for full transparency in all dealings with oil and gas.  The recently leaked Auditor General’s report for 2018 contains page after page detailing corrupt practices, billions of unaccounted public monies and brazen theft by the Granger Administration. The attempt to sign a five-year oil sale arrangement with a clear fund-siphon attached is beyond the pale of honesty and decency.
David Granger has hidden from the glare of unscripted questions throughout his Presidency; he has clung fiercely to the idea that it is better to be silent and thought a fool than to speak up and remove all doubt; this cannot be the modus operandi of Guyana’s leader in our new era as an oil-producing nation. Opaqueness is a recipe for civil disaster.
Granger is going to attempt to sell the next five years of oil production before February 2020, mere days before a general election. This is how Granger wants to begin his “Decade of Development”, it is a roadmap for corruption; a return to the ‘dark ages’ and an establishment of a Granger Monarchy. Republic day is on the March 23, a week later Regional and General Elections will be held, let us resolve to vote for the end of opaque oil dealings, corruption and see a return to the rule of law and a system of parliamentary democracy.
The PPP/C presidential candidate has stated publicly that there is a great need for measures to be in place to ensure transparency and accountability to guard the emerging sector against corruption.  Given that Granger came into Government and met a full Treasury (US$968 million) and is leaving it with nothing but buttons five years later, there is no greater urgency for all Guyanese to work together to halt this insidious long-term sale of oil being negotiated clandestinely by Granger and Bynoe. I will continue to shine this little light of mine, Guyanese will get to do their bit at the polls on March 2, 2020.

Respectfully,
Robin Singh