By Imran Khan

“It feels like it’s forever
No reason for emptiness”
– Excerpt from the 1987 billboard hit song ‘Seasons Change’ by Exposé, from the album Exposure.

AFTER months of blistering sunshine which led to drought in some parts of the country, Guyana has now entered the annual season of rainfall. Seasons change. They always do. It is an annual cycle with which we are familiar.

Guyana is currently in the midst of another season.

There is palpable and widespread public anxiety with regard to charges not having yet been instituted en masse following the many revelations in the various publicly released audit reports.

A good deal of these audit reports have revealed to varying degrees gross mismanagement, corruption, fraud, unprofessionalism, malpractices and a complete disregard for rules and regulations. It is understandable that the long-suffering public is anxious for charges to be laid against those culpable.

This government is, however, taking a methodical and thorough approach as outlined by His Excellency President Brigadier (Rtd) David Granger on The Public Interest television programme of May 19th, 2016.

“Where the evidence is available, we will do prosecutions in the court. We want to make sure persons who have committed offences are taken before the courts, but we want to make sure the prosecutions are successful too,” His Excellency said, while being careful to note that the audit reports must not be tools for witch-hunting or to “dismiss people willy nilly.”

Pursuing the charging of those who have committed offences to satisfy the public’s appetite without being adequately prepared legally to so do is an approach which, though unpopular, is not best advised. Is it not prudent and responsible to prepare well in an effort to prosecute successfully than to launch into instituting charges with haste for political expediency and just for the sake of prosecution, without reasonable assurance that such prosecutions would conclude in success?

This is coupled with the fact that some of the audit reports, though having pointed to malpractices, have not in and of themselves provided sufficient evidence to allow for successful prosecution. There are indeed some reports which establish blatant acts of corruption. In some other cases the scope of examination needs to be broadened, and in yet other cases more work is required to assemble a greater volume of evidence to pursue this course of action. This process takes time.

“Sometimes the evidence has not been sufficient to bring prosecutions in court and we have been concerned with that evidence and in some cases persons who are alerted to the findings of the reports have left the country, sometimes they are already citizens of other countries and we have not embarked on extradition procedures, because sometimes they are not warranted. I would say the main function of some of those reports is to prevent a recurrence or to prevent the continuation of any corrupt or improper practice,” President Granger added at the time he spoke to the issue, noting later in the programme that he is “not a reckless person.”

The Government of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana commissioned 45 audits into various state agencies. To date 26 of these audit reports have been released to the public. This, is therefore, still, the season of revelation. Another 19 reports are to be released.

The season of charges will follow.
No season continues forever. Life is not static. The season will change, as seasons always do.
Note: Link to released audit reports: http://finance.gov.gy/documents-publications/category/audit-reports
Imran Khan is Director of Public Information and Press Secretary to Prime Minister The Honourable Moses Nagamootoo. imran.khan@opm.gov.gy