By Gordon French
Caribbean Net News Guyana Correspondent
Email: gordon@caribbeannetnews.com
GEORGETOWN, Guyana: Guyanese President Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday criticised the United States government over two recent reports that cited the government for its inaction in fighting the narco-trade and human rights abuses by law enforcement agencies in the CARICOM country.
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A defiant President Bharrat Jagdeo (right)
and Army Chief-of-Staff, Brigadier Edward Collins at Thursday's opening of the annual officers' conference |
Addressing army officers at the opening of an annual conference, Jagdeo said that his administration will resist attempts to legislate laws that will screen investors, which could reduce Guyana’s competitiveness with the developed world.
“Do you think that if someone goes to invest in the US, they pass legislation to screen the investor? They find the person who is doing the laundering or the trafficking, but not to screen investors. They want us to screen the investors here, something that they don’t do. Anyone can walk into the US and invest now, but we must screen everyone coming here,” Jagdeo complained.
The US drug report had indicated a lapse on efforts by the administration to prosecute money launderers and drug traffickers, even as the illegal flourishing. The US stated that two activities were benefiting the construction industry.
However, Jagdeo said that the US needs to focus more on its own narco-fight and pointed to the mega financial aid provided by the US.
“All the drugs from Columbia, Guyana, Trinidad and from Suriname and the heroin from Afghanistan go to the United States of America. They can’t stop the drugs flowing in there and they are telling me to stop with the big borders that we have, where people don’t even live. Most of the drug is being sold in the streets of the United States of America,” Jagdeo stated.
He said that for the past seven years, direct assistance from the United States to Guyana to fight drug trafficking is about US$20,000 per year in comparison with a Permanent Secretary within the government, who earns more.
“That is what we get to fight drug dealers, drug traffickers and money laundering, in direct assistance. Columbia gets billions of dollars,” Jagdeo said, adding that he is by no way anti-American.
Noting the corruption scandals the US has faced since the war in Iraq started, President Jagdeo stated that the US is perceived as the most corrupt country in the world. The Guyanese head of state also ridiculed the local media for its reportage on these issues.
“We have a local media corps that will never ask the US ambassador or someone else in the US government about the 500 hundred people that they have and have not charged for five six years, in prison. They don’t have a status,” Jagdeo said. | 
