–Minister Edghill reminds members that non-disclosure now carries criminal penalties

THE Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Tuesday revisited the controversy surrounding the former A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+AFC) government’s failure to disclose receipt of an US$18 million ExxonMobil signing bonus in 2016.

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill reminded the Committee that subsequent legislation introduced criminal penalties for failing to disclose government revenues as required by law.

Edghill made the remarks during the committee’s review of the Auditor- General’s reports, as officials examined the handling of the 2016 payment and its eventual transfer into the Consolidated Fund in 2019.

Recalling the controversy, Edghill said the former APNU+AFC government initially failed to disclose receipt of the US$18 million signing bonus from ExxonMobil, which was deposited into a special Ministry of Finance account at the Bank of Guyana instead of the Consolidated Fund.

The subject minister at the time was Winston Jordan.

“A signing bonus was received; it was not disclosed. It was denied publicly, and the National Assembly came by way of questions and debate on this matter,” Edghill said.

He said the controversy prompted changes to the legal framework governing the disclosure of government receipts, including provisions that establish criminal penalties for failing to comply with the requirements.

“It is as a result of answers that were given in the National Assembly, and protestations that were made in segments of the society led by the then opposition [People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)]… there was an admission that it was a signing bonus. Before that, no one knew it was a signing bonus,” Edghill said.

He said the controversy prompted the introduction of legislation requiring the Minister of Finance to disclose receipts within a prescribed period and deposit the funds into the Consolidated Fund.

“Since then, because of that, legislation has been put in place that it forces the Minister of Finance to disclose receipts, and he has a particular time to make that disclosure and deposit it into the Consolidated Fund,” he said.

Edghill added, “And if he does not, there are criminal penalties that the law stipulates.”

Edghill also expressed satisfaction that the accounting error identified by the Auditor General was subsequently corrected, with the funds eventually transferred to the Consolidated Fund.

“I’m happy that the Auditor-General is reporting that action was taken, and the money that should have gone to the Consolidated Fund in the first instance went to the Consolidated Fund,” he said.

The US$18 million signing bonus was paid by ExxonMobil to the Government of Guyana on October 31, 2016, under the former APNU+AFC administration. The money was deposited into a special Ministry of Finance account at the Bank of Guyana instead of the Consolidated Fund, where government revenues would ordinarily be placed.”

The payment became public in December 2017, following media reports and questions about the government’s handling of the funds. The then administration defended keeping the money in a separate account, citing national security considerations and the need to finance Guyana’s legal case in the border controversy with Venezuela at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The Auditor-General subsequently questioned the arrangement in the 2018 report, noting that government revenues should be deposited into the Consolidated Fund unless legislation authorised otherwise.

During the PAC proceedings, Finance Secretary Sukrishnalall Pasha, outlined how the Ministry of Finance instructed the Bank of Guyana to transfer the money into the Consolidated Fund.

The transfers began in December 2018 and continued into January and February 2019, when the special account was closed.

He acknowledged that the arrangement was an error, which the Auditor General flagged in the 2018 report.

“The Ministry made that error,” the Finance Secretary said, explaining that the Auditor General recommended that the funds be transferred into the Consolidated Fund, a measure that was implemented in 2019.

He said government revenues should be deposited into the Consolidated Fund unless legislation allows them to be held in another account.

“All the revenues earned by government should be placed in the Consolidated Fund except where some other legislation allows for those funds to be held in another account.”

Pasha told the committee that based on his review of the Auditor General’s reports from 2019 to 2025, he was not aware of a similar issue being identified during that period.

PAC member and APNU representative Ganesh Mahipaul acknowledged the principle, telling the Finance Secretary: “I hear you when you [say the money] should have been deposited directly into the Consolidated Fund, and I do support that all government revenue should be deposited there.”

The Natural Resource Fund Act 2021 provides a statutory framework for the management of petroleum revenues, including requirements governing the receipt, deposit and reporting of those funds.

The PAC, chaired by Vishnu Panday of the We Invest in Nationhood (WIN) party, examines audited government accounts and expenditure outlined in the Auditor General’s reports. It supervises the functioning of the Auditor General in accordance with relevant laws and procedures.

The committee also nominates members of the Public Procurement Commission for parliamentary approval and presidential appointment and determines their emoluments and allowances in consultation with the Commission.