| …minority stake in company presents significant risk “… it is indeed mystifying to say a large investment project is profitable without a due diligence report being available for public scrutiny…this is unheard of in financial markets.”“It is indeed mystifying to say that a large investment project is profitable without a due diligence report being available for public scrutiny…this is unheard of in financial markets.”This is the assertion of renowned Professor and former head of the Guyana Agricultural and Industrial Development Bank (GAIBANK), Dr Kenrick Hunte,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, who believes that Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh, is not being forthright on the Amaila Falls Hydro Electric Project’s investment and as such is clouding the issues involved.Dr Hunte in his response to Dr Singh said that the Finance Minister has highlighted a series of unsubstantiated benefits to be derived through taking a minority stake in the project and should these become a reality “this will be path breaking in the fields of finance, accounting and economics. A Nobel Prize will just be a handshake away.”Dr Hunte has since said that given the factors involved, the Guyana Government should either sell its shares in the project or make all the information available to the National Assembly.He was at the time responding to Dr Singh’s assertion that there is no debt being incurred by the Guyana Government in the current structure of the project.“The fact that Amaila is a large investment that involves hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ dollars; and the fact that it will encumber for many years to come a significant share of our natural resources and patrimony, information on this project cannot be restricted to a few individuals.”Dr Hunte maintains that only private companies are allowed by law to keep their business private.He insists, “Amaila is not a private or a public company owned by stakeholders; it’s a merger of both private and public stakeholders and as such all information must be placed in the public domain.”Dr Hunte believes that tax dollars are to be used for the public good, while private dollars are circumscribed to private interest.He posits that public good and private interest might not be the same.According to Dr Hunte, this is a predicament that complicates Amaila and it must be resolved.“Consequently, the Minster must release to the law making body in Guyana,China Jerseys, the duly elected Parliament, the full and complete project appraisal document that will spell out in detail information that includes parameters for ownership, debt and equity; financial and economic rates of return; the management and governance structure; tax liability issues; the environmental analysis, and the social impact assessment, among other concerns.”The Professor believes that since the people of Guyana own shares in Amaila, they must also see the legal documents used to register the company. He said that the complete appraisal and the company registration papers are fundamental to clearing all the information gaps in this project.According to Dr Hunte, should Government be unwilling to make the information public, then it should sell its shares, “get out of this investment immediately and leave it fully in the hands of the private sector.”Dr Hunte points out that with Guyana being a minority shareholder in Amaila Falls Hydro Inc., it can be voted out completely by the majority owner Sithe Global. Should this happen, “the Guyanese people will be left holding an empty bag,” he said.In light of this possibility,Carolina Panthers Team Store Online, Dr Hunte asks, “Why would the Government and people of Guyana want to be trapped in such a situation?” He suggests that it makes no sense for the government to be a minority owner in the Amaila venture. He said should Amaila, in its current structure, be up and running and Sithe Global decides that they are finished and want to close shop, “they can do so at any time and walk away, leaving the minority holder,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys, the Government and people of Guyana, in a serious situation with no recourse.”Dr Hunte argues that “no government should be placed in such as invidious position.”As such Dr Hunte said,Andre Smith Jersey, “I would advise the Government of Guyana through the Minister to sell the Amaila shares and use the US$100M which has so far been set-aside for this investment in other worthwhile projects, including strengthening the government oversight functions in this and other related sectors.”He said that once the Amaila shares are sold, this will free taxpayers, the Parliament and the Treasury from placing on the national books a liability of US$758M.Dr Hunte further stated that since there is the view by the government that Amaila is a profitable undertaking, “it stands to reason that finding private buyers would not be difficult”.He challenged the government to “stand by its word of the profitability of Amaila and test its own theory by placing its Amaila shares up for sale to the private sector.”The Guyana and Caribbean stock markets,Cheap Air Max 720 China, among others in world financial markets, are useful places for this process to start, “once the due diligence examination is completed by the Inter-American Development Bank,” Dr Hunte said. |
