ADDRESSING the high levels of corruption that prevailed under the rule of the APNU+AFC administration, Vice President, Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo noted that authorities are still to locate the contractors who worked on the rapidly deteriorating Durban Park Jubilee Stadium.
Dr. Jagdeo mentioned this during his most recent weekly press conference held at Freedom House, Robb Street.

He listed several other examples of corruption under the previous government including the manner in which that government went about awarding contracts.
The Durban Park “stadium” has been featured in the news for years with substantiated claims being that the $1.1 billion was not properly spent. Jagdeo noted that the missing contractors received some $600 million.
The project was again featured in the Auditor General (AG), Deodat Sharma’s most recent report.

Sharma noted that his office undertook a special audit in accordance with Section 26 of the Audit Act 2004, on the construction of Durban Park and an interim report was issued on December 7, 2018.
He said that construction commenced in 2015 in preparation for Guyana’s 50th Independence Anniversary to be celebrated in 2016.

A private company named Homestretch Development Inc. (HDI) was created to implement this project. As at December 31, 2017, amounts totalling $1.150 billion were expended.
Sharma noted that payment vouchers to support expenditures incurred by the Ministry of Public Infrastructure, now public works, totalling $70.610 million were not produced for audit examination.
“As such, the completeness, accuracy and validity of this amount could not be determined,” the report stated.

In addition, Sharma noted that some $500 million was paid to HDI in 2017 by the ministry to enable HDI to meet its obligation to its creditors.
However, there was no documentation attached to the payment vouchers to indicate the works done, supervisory checks carried out on the works, as well as certification that the works were satisfactorily completed.
“Only the list of HDI creditors and government’s proposed payment allocation to each creditor was attached to the payment vouchers. In the circumstances, the correctness, accuracy, and validity of the payments made could not be determined”, the report noted.
The AG mentioned that his office had written the then Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Public Infrastructure on July 19, 2018, requesting documentation detailing the works done, supervisory checks of the said works, as well as certification that works were satisfactorily completed.

The ministry told the Audit Office that it was not involved in the operations of HDI. Hence, it did not have any information detailing supervisory checks or their methodology of determining that works were satisfactorily completed.
On March 11, 2019, the Audit Office also made a request to the ministry for additional documentation for the project.
Some documents have since been submitted. However, years later, the Audit Office stated, “At the time of reporting in September 2024, this matter remained the same.”