Dear Editor

LAST evening (Wednesday) I was scanning the TV for something to watch and came across the AFC TV programme, Alliance on the Move.
I had seen the programme before, but never bothered to watch it. I confess I am not very [much] into politics.

The persons on the panel seemed to be discussing some general issues but at the time I joined, they were speaking on the oil contract. One of the panelists said something that caught my ear just as I was about to flick away. Responding to a caller he said, “It is a PPP contract!”

Mr. Editor, to use youthful slang, I was shocked. I was stunned. I have read many articles about the contract and have heard many purported “oil experts” speaking about it, but I have never heard this before last night.

The panelist explained that the ExxonMobil contract that has attracted everyone’s attention was actually signed in 1999 by [then] President Janet Jagan. He also explained that though ExxonMobil had no obligation to do so, the contract was opened in 2016 and some clauses were amended in favour of Guyana. Notably, was the other hot point of the contract, the 2% royalty. The royalty that existed under the original contract that was signed by the PPP President Janet Jagan in 1999 included a 1% royalty, but this in fact wasn’t a real royalty, since it was paid to the government by the government. I’ve tried to wrap my head around this to figure out how someone pays himself from their own money. When the contract was opened in 2016, the royalty became 2% which is now paid from the gross earning of oil production.

I appreciated this information and would like to encourage the government to engage in some serious public relations to get these facts out. I also appreciated Minister Gaskin’s frankness. It was refreshing to listen to a political leader speaking on a subject without blaming anyone. Even though the contract was recognized as a PPP contract (signed during the time of the PPP administration) he stressed that it is a government contract and has to be honoured regardless of who assumes office.
This is a stark contrast to the information that I have heard coming [from]the Leader of the Opposition. Based on his comments, you are likely to assume that this is a contract that was signed after May 2015 when the coalition won the election.

I would like to leave a few words of advice for our political leaders.
1. The youth of today are far more connected than you realise, we absorb enormous amounts of information daily.
2. We can recognise dishonesty and insincerity very easily.
We are watching.

Regards
Peter Lambert