Financial analyst, Joel Bhagwandin has thrown a stark spotlight on the glaring failures of the political opposition in serving its primary role—holding government accountable. In a revelatory letter to this news agency, Bhagwandin unveiled an astonishing truth: The opposition had prior knowledge of ExxonMobil’s controversial dealings with the Natural Resources Ministry—specifically, the dubious reduction of disputed costs from a whopping US$214M to a mere US$3M. Despite knowing this, it chose to maintain an eerie silence and keep the Guyanese citizens in the dark.
Bhagwandin said he made this discovery following his participation a panel discussion earlier today which focused on the Guyanese oil and gas economy. That virtual discussion was hosted by the Guyana Business Journal & Magazine Platform. The discussion included participation from Elson Low, Economic Advisor to the Leader of the Opposition. (See link to full discussion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ma9XSXrKdfM )
Bhagwandin vividly recounted the moment Low, inadvertently, dropped the bombshell, revealing the opposition’s knowledge of ExxonMobil’s contentious actions.
According to Bhagwandin, “Low revealed that the opposition was told by ExxonMobil about the reduction in the disputed sum of US$214 million to US$3 million during a meeting with ExxonMobil Guyana, which occurred one week (specifically during the period September 4 to September 9, 2023) prior to the media and others making a big controversy out of the issue.”
In essence, this tacit admission by Low shattered the veneer of ignorance the opposition had been hiding behind.
Bhagwandin then meticulously pieced together the timeline leading up to today’s revelation to underscore the opposition’s blatant inertia and incompetence in fulfilling its mandate.
The financial analyst noted that on September 5, 2023, the Guyana Government had confirmed that the disputed costs which were flagged by British auditor, IHS Markit at US$214M, was reduced to US$3M. At this point, Bhagwandin said the opposition did not make an issue of it.
In the following week at Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo’s press conference held on September 14, 2023, Bhagwandin noted that Kiana Wilburg, editor of Guyana Standard News sought a clarification / explanation from the Vice President on the reduction. “It was then that the Vice President explained that they (government) were of the view that the reduction was more or less sanctioned by the Guyana Revenue Authority (the government’s appointed advisor on these matters). This means that there was some further probing internally at the Vice President’s level that revealed this was unauthorized,” Bhagwandin wrote.
Following the above revelation by the Vice President, Bhagwandin noted that it was then the Opposition emerged from its inertia to reveal today that it was aware of the US$3M reduction all along.
“The foregoing sequence of events simply and indisputably proves that the opposition is embarrassingly incompetent, woefully weak, and ineffective on these and all other technical matters,” wrote the financial analyst.
More importantly, Bhagwandin said the foregoing effectively demonstrates that the government is evidently holding itself accountable, given that it uncovered the unauthorized reduction, then took a firm decision that the original sum of US$214 million stands.
