— ‘corrupt’ officials of former administration must face the courts, says Ramjattan

CHAIRMAN of the Alliance For Change (AFC) Khemraj Ramjattan on Friday dismissed claims by the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) that the coalition government is using its power and influence to charge former officers of its administration.

“I am aware that the prosecution of a predecessor who belongs to a competing political party is likely to be perceived as politically-motivated. No matter how justified or warranted the prosecution is… but political expediency should never and will never guide us as a government (APNU+AFC) to guide the application of justice,” Ramjattan said in reference to charges laid by the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) against former Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh and former NICIL head, Winston Brassington.

The duo has been charged with misconduct in public office, contrary to the common law.
“Our nation cannot move forward in any meaningful way without coming to terms legally and morally with the abhorrent activities that were authorised and even given a false fake character of legality, committed by the men and women in the highest levels of the PPP government.”

Ramjattan, a former member of the PPP, said the coalition government unearthed evidence which warranted that same be handed over to the Guyana Police Force.
Dr Singh and Brassington in December 2009, by way of an agreement of sale and purchase “acted recklessly” when they sold to National Hardware Guyana Limited, lands amounting to 103.88 acres, property of the State for the sum of $598, 659, 398 (vat exclusive) without first having procured a valuation of the said property from a competent valuation officer.

The second charge alleged that the duo on Tuesday, December 30, 2008, by way of agreement of sale and purchase “without due diligence” sold to Scady Business Corporation, land located at Liliendaal, ECD, amounting to 4,700 acres, also the property of the State for the sum of $150,000,000 knowing that the said property was valued at $340,000,000 by Rodrigues Architects Associate.

The final charge alleges that the former finance minister and NICIL’s CEO on Saturday, May 14, 2011 by way of agreement of sale and purchase “acted recklessly” when they sold to Multi-cinemas Guyana Inc. 10, 002 acres of land located at Turkeyen, ECD, property of the State for the sum of $185, 037,000 without first having procured a valuation of the said property from a competent valuation officer.

SHOULD NOT CONTINUE
Meanwhile, Ramjattan said if such discretions are allowed to continue, then members of government will feel the need to practice and advocate the selling of State properties at low prices “and without the lawful procedure and they can do so with impunity; we cannot allow that.”

He said it is for the same reason that since taking office in May 2015, his government embarked on forensic audits of various government agencies.
Those audits, Ramjattan said, disclosed information which pointed to gross misconduct by public officers.

“…when the information was so bad we sent it to the police; there was some that was not so bad and some that was bad,” he said, making it clear that his government does not influence the Police Legal Advisor (PLA) or the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
He said the entire process is transparent and pointed to hiring of Irish expert, Dr Sam Sittlington, to assist SOCU in its mandate.

“So all the pieces are there to ensure the warranting and justification of these prosecutions, but they are going to play that we are politically-motivated and so on.”
Ramjattan said if after 52 years as an Independent nation, Guyanese cannot come to terms with unauthorised activities of leading members, then the country cannot progress. He accused the PPP officers of “contorting the law” to make dubious decisions.

“It is important to understand that to move forward after 52 years we need to come to terms with all these things. Because every other government will feel when they go in there that they could go and sell properties to their friends and family at cheap prices or with no valuations and then use the law to say we are not public officers,” he told reporters.

Lawyers for the accused have contended that they are not public officers in accordance with the Constitution. But Ramjattan, a lawyer by profession, has said “that public officer thing in the Constitution is for a different thing totally.”

“Otherwise a minister could thief and then say you can’t charge me because I am not a public officer. We got to understand that this thing is going to be politicised and it is going to get nowhere, because we are going to hold our course and of course there is the court system. If the courts release them then fine,” he concluded.