OPPOSITION Leader Bharrat Jagdeo has viewed in dim light an article headlined “The $20 Billion Question for Guyana” authored by Clifford Krauss which appeared recently in the New York Times.

“I do believe that many journalists from the developed world come here with the sole purpose of making us look like back water countries and that we are on the cusp of civil war and ethnic conflagration, but in our country we have greater stability than their country,” said Jagdeo during a press conference on Thursday.

The Opposition Leader said the article was unfair but it was expected because foreign journalists would naturally look for the worst pictures of Guyana.

“I disagree with how Guyana and Guyanese are portrayed abroad and we disagree with any unfair portrayal,” said Jagdeo.

He, however, agreed with the section of the article which highlighted that the legislation to create a sovereign wealth fund lacks sufficient regulatory controls to avert corruption.
Jagdeo said the legislation is needed because Government needs to make the right decisions in order to ensure Guyanese benefit from the oil and gas industry.

Finance Minister Winston Jordan, in his response to the article, had said extensive research has been conducted on issues of the “pre-source curse where unrealistic expectations ahead of oil production result in demands for higher wages and government spending, and the other two pitfalls — the resource curse and Dutch Disease.”

“Take a closer look at our country, it’s proud and resourceful people and our resilience in the face of the odds, he urged.” The minister also urged Guyanese to “reject the article and to look towards the future with hope in our heritage, in the legacies of our ancestors and in the path that is being crafted for us now”.