FORMER Chairman of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC), Clinton Williams, on Wednesday refuted claims that he was part of corrupt practices while he sat as Chair of the Mining Commission.Speaking with the Guyana Chronicle at his Guyana National Industrial Corporation (GNIC) office on Lombard Street, Williams said he had, at all times, followed the protocols and procedures prescribed to his post as Chairman.

“I have done nothing wrong; all I did was try to clean up the place,” he said in reference to the magnitude of alleged corruption that exists within the GGMC.

The former GGMC Chair labelled as ‘inaccurate’ the article published by the Guyana Chronicle on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 under the headline “Underhand deal- transaction that takes months completed in days; Gov’t probes alleged corrupt land deal between Bai Shan Lin and GGMC.”

“The Commissioner wrote me since June on that matter. I kept it on my desk because I was waiting on a response from him in relation to the correctness and the legality of the transaction, because the company had made an objection against what the Commission did. So, based on that objection, I held up that transaction. When I got the call from him that said everything was in order, then I signed,” he stated as he showcased the document at reference.

Williams explained that the document requesting his signature for the grant of ten mining permits for gold and precious stones in the Mazaruni District #3 to be issued to New East International Inc. was in his possession for approximately five months. He told Guyana Chronicle that the document presented by former Commissioner of the GGMC, Rickford Vieira, for signature was the subject of investigation.

“It was sitting on my desk for five months, pending the outcome of the investigations; not the same date that the Guyana Chronicle has suggested. There was no such thing as money transfer. I don’t deal with those things,” he said.

In the document, seen by this publication, Vieira questioned Williams as to why only three of nine mining permits were approved. “Is there a reason for such decision?” the former GGMC Commissioner penned on the document. On the very document, Williams responded by informing Vieira that the former subject Minister, Robert Persaud, had requested that the transaction for the mining permits be reviewed.

“So we held off on it, pending investigations on whether the process within the GGMC was indeed followed according to procedure. That is why I wrote that note to the Commissioner: ‘Please indicate whether this particular person to whom this thing was awarded initially has withdrawn his objection’. There was an objection by two people,” Williams told Guyana Chronicle.

The document referred to was dated June 17, 2015 and Williams’s response to the request was dated October 2015.

Williams stressed the importance of understanding the standard operating procedures of the GGMC, and he said the GGMC Board of Directors, which includes the Chairman, is responsible for the processing of applications for mining permits, and as such, does not approve mining permits.

He said that by law it is the relevant authorities within the respective departments that are required to process the applications for mining permits. The Commissioner signs them and then submits them to the Chairman for him to countersign, thereby making the document legal. The Chairman’s signature is required for all mining properties, and this is not limited to mining permits.

“On this occasion, for these transactions, we received a request by the then minister to review these two sets of mining permits, and so we held off on it pending investigations whether the process within GGMC was indeed followed according to procedure. Fortunately, the other objection that was raised by Mr. Hopkinson is still upheld, but this particular person that they are referring to, the objection was in fact withdrawn. It was on that basis that I signed off on that thing,” the former GGMC Board Chairman told Guyana Chronicle.

With reference to money being collected by both Williams and Vieira and an existing feud between the two, Williams said he does not handle finances at GGMC. He explained that many senior officers at GGMC became uncomfortable when he, along with other board members, agreed to have a review of the management systems of the Commission following numerous complaints of corruption.

“In that review, the report suggested a number of allegations of which the Commissioner was aware. Since that time, it was felt that because I, as Chairman of the Board, (had) approved for this system of review to take place, that I had some issue with the Commissioner,” he added.

Williams noted that the discomfort by some officials of the GGMC did not affect him much, as he was there to carry out his functions. He said, too, that he never handled money on behalf of the GGMC, as it was not his place to do so.

“If I had to do it again, I would,” he told Guyana Chronicle.