Dear Editor,
AFTER months of consultative and careful preparation by local minds and international experts’ inputs, the SARA (State Assets Recovery Agency) Bill found its way into the hallowed chamber of the Guyana Parliament on January 30, 2017, for tabling. Behind the championing of this Bill are a group of resolute and dynamic gentlemen, namely Messrs Clive Y Thomas (Dr.), Aubrey Retemeyer, Eric Phillips and Brian Horne. Together with their respective legal and support teams, these great nationalists have stood against the odds of numerous skeptics and hard-line resistance from within and without to create this historic landmark for Guyana.
This achievement has tremendous significance for Guyana — especially on the international stage — where this country is often viewed with cautious suspicion as a semi-corrupt nation, deeply compromised and unwilling to frontally tackle graft and corruption. Over the years, particularly the past 20 years prior to 2015, there have been numerous complaints of stolen government property, and abuse, misuse and conversion of other state assets by known persons and others yet to be known. Proceeds span a diverse and complex network, trajected even beyond this nation’s borders.
The SARA Bill seeks to integrate and empower the SARU (State Assets Recovery Unit) to trace and recover stolen or misappropriated state assets. It also seeks to set up a legislative mechanism that will deter and prevent such activities from taking place in the future. Assets of the state fundamentally include taxpayers-funded tangibles, land and finance.
Every elected government in the world has a fiduciary duty to prudently manage, preserve and protect its state’s assets. Guyana is no exception, as the majority of citizens expect the government to ensure that there is accountability, fairness and equitable distribution of the nation’s resources.
In November, 2009, at the Global Forum IV in Doha, Qatar, Mr Eric Holder, a former Attorney General of the United States, stated: “[We] must work together to ensure that corrupt officials do not retain the illicit proceeds of their corruption. There is no gentleway to say it: when kleptocrats loot their nations’ treasuries, steal natural resources, and embezzle development aid, they condemn their nations’ children to starvation and disease. In the face of this manifest injustice, asset recovery is a global imperative.” (end of quote). Now that the SARA Bill has been tabled, we look forward with great anticipation for its successful passage in parliament within the coming weeks.
Regards
Orette Cutting