–Department of Public Information

HOURS after Trevor Benn was arrested for allegedly defrauding the State, the A Partnership for National Unity+Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) opposition went public to accuse the government of victimising the former Chief Executive Officer of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission (GL&SC). The Coalition went even further to accuse the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) government of witch-hunting Afro-Guyanese.
In a statement issued subsequently, the Department of Public Information (DPI) said that the APNU+AFC had been conveniently distorting and misrepresenting the facts and circumstances surrounding Benn’s arrest. The DPI reminded that while it was in opposition, the PPP/C had promised to conduct a review of some of the undertakings of the previous administration. As a result, a number of transgressions were detected, including the improper disposal of public properties, where Benn allegedly acted in contravention of the State Lands Act, which mandates competitive public bidding, as well as the President’s approval before State lands can be disposed of.

The PPP/C had also accused the APNU+AFC of being beneficiaries of the “gifted” transactions. “These files have not yet been passed to the Guyana Police Force, but will soon be transmitted,” the statement said, adding, “Mr. Benn exclusively determined whom the purchasers or lessees were. Worse yet, among the lands Mr. Benn sold, were lands that were not even under the control of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission,” the DPI pointed out.
The missive went on to highlight several examples, which included the sale of Ogle lands belonging to the National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL) and the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).

“He did not receive permission from either Cabinet or NICIL/GuySuCo to sell those lands. In this transaction, he sold six acres of prime lands for six million dollars; a million dollars per acre, when these lands easily value approximately one million US dollars per acre,” the DPI statement said.
It also pointed to the sale of $80 million worth of land belonging to the National Sports Commission. “Again, he had no power to sell, and moreso, to sell lands that did not come under the control of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission,” the statement indicated.
It went on to highlight an instance where plots sold “in a particular location” for as high as $150 million, were sold to a Board Member of the Guyana Lands and Surveys Commission for $13.5 million.
“He did so, after rejecting a valuation certificate from the Government valuation office, valuing the said land at $60 million. He requested a second valuation, which came in at $13.5 million, the price for which he sold the land,” the statement said.
The DPI statement also claimed that Benn has been implicated in several other instances of misconduct, and that more criminal charges are likely.

IT IS NOT A MATTER OF RACE/ETHNICITY

The DPI has rejected the opposition’s claims that the government is witch-hunting Afro- Guyanese. It said that just as it is reviewing the questionable land transactions, it has also been reviewing a number of contracts awarded for public works; these efforts have seen contracts being terminated and some contractors being sued. The press statement was quick to note that the majority of the errant contractors, such as S. Maraj, are Indo-Guyanese.
“The public is well aware of legal proceedings filed in relation to BK Marine Inc., regarding a wharf facility at Kingston, Georgetown, and BK International in relation to a warehouse in close proximity thereto,” the statement noted.
It reminded, too, that persons such as Eddie Doolall, Avalon Jagnandan, along with “many more non-Afro-Guyanese, have spent time in custody; as long as 72 hours, as permitted by the Constitution, in assisting the Guyana Police Force in their investigation into similar land transactions”.
“These race-mongering politicians were silent on these matters, but whenever an Afro-Guyanese is arrested, they beat their racial drums, as we are seeing in relation to Mr. Trevor Benn,” the DPI statement posited.

It said, too, that the same sentiments were echoed when Clairmont Mingo, Keith Lowenfield and Roxanne Meyers were held in relation to attempting to pervert democracy, and alter the results of the last elections.
The statement also referenced instances where former Housing Minister Annette Ferguson allegedly gifted herself four house lots. The same minister was also fingered in a “gift-giving” scandal, which saw her benefiting from millions of dollars’ worth of gifts and “donations” during her tenure as Junior Minister of Public Infrastructure.
Her senior colleague, David Patterson was also accused of accepting millions of dollars in gifts, including a hefty gold bracelet. Patterson is also facing fraud charges in relation to the Asphalt Plant.