‘Vehicle for corruption’ speeding forward – Opposition Leader

…as plans to sell-off sugar assets without valuations start

Expressions of interest have been invited by the Special Purpose Unit, tasked with the divestment of assets of the sugar industry, via advertisements in the local dailies. And the “vehicle for corruption” – as dubbed by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo – has put not only Skeldon, Rose Hall and the Enmore factories on the chopping block, but have also included the Wales Estate.

At his last news conference, Jagdeo made clear that established procedures for the divestment of State assets are being ignored. He explained that the structure included a unit staffed by technical personnel, who reported to the Privatisation Board, composed of representatives of the labour movement, the Private Sector and consumers – who then made recommendations to the Cabinet on privatisation undertakings.
More worrying, according to him, is the absence of valuations of the assets put on the chopping block by the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Special Purpose Unit. “Deals will be made there with no valuation of the assets and one day we wake up and all of it is gone… this means it will go from the Special Purpose Unit to a few Ministers and then to a buyer without valuation…. how can you sell an asset without doing a valuation… this Special Purpose Unit is a vehicle for corruption,” Jagdeo said.

Wales Estate
On the issue of the Wales Estate, the APNU/AFC Government announced the closure of the estate. It then indicated that there would be diversification efforts at the estate, which has not happened. Now Wales is on the chopping block, as indicated by the advertisement.
The APNU/AFC has presented no detailed plan to address the state or future of the sugar industry, other than an eight-page ‘State Paper’ – of which, four and a half pages deals with the history of the sugar industry in Guyana. The remaining pages briefly details plans for merger of sugar estates, the Guyana Sugar Corporation’s recovery of drainage and irrigation costs from the Government of Guyana and plans for divestment.
Government’s own Commission of Inquiry, which recommended the non-closure of sugar estates, has also been ignored.

Still opposed
Meanwhile, the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) – the largest body representing sugar workers – has indicated that it plans to approach the courts to prevent the sale of the sugar industry’s assets and also endeavours to prevent the closure of more sugar estate; the Wales Estate being the first to go.
GAWU President, Komal Chand, told this publication that there is an opportunity and willingness for stakeholders to come together and resolve issues perceived as problems, particularly given that there are solutions that could be worked out in the best interest of the sugar workers and the country as a whole.

Unnamed partner
Additionally, the advertisement also noted that the Special Purpose Unit is “partnering with international professional financial services firm to provide technical and financial advisory support” – in an effort to ensure transparency. However, the firm is not named.
Notably, the Special Purpose Unit is operating with a multimillion-dollar budget. A whopping $130 million was approved by Government majority on July 7, 2017 for the Unit.
The details on the ‘Special Purpose Unit’, which is included in the Financial Paper, states that the Unit will need the monies for the “provision of employment costs, utilities, professional and legal fees, advertisements, office space, operating supplies, furniture and equipment.”
The Unit is tasked with the divestment (sell-off) of assets owned by the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).
The advertisement makes clear that the Unit is acting on behalf of the Government of Guyana and the letters of interest would be a first step in the process of “finding/shortlisting interested individuals or entities of all construct with an interest in any one of, combination of, or the group of estates/factories mentioned”. November 3, 2017, is the listed deadline for persons or companies, individually or part of a joint venture/consortium or independent developers to express interest.