By Antonio Dey | HGP Nightly News |
GEORGETOWN, GUYANA & QUEENS, NEW YORK — Former Guyanese magistrate, Senior State Counsel, and currently elected Judicial Delegate and community leader in Queens, New York, Albert Baldeo, has delivered a stinging rebuke of the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) administration, issuing a “failed grade” for its handling of the catastrophic sinking of the M.V. Barima, which claimed over 100 lives.
In an exclusive interview with HGP Nightly News, the veteran Guyanese-American legal practitioner warned that the government’s perceived lack of empathy, slow emergency response, and institutional scapegoating could define its legacy and ultimately cost the ruling party victory at the next General and Regional Elections.
Neglect of Citizens and Systemic Maritime Decay
Baldeo expressed profound concern over the state’s treatment of affected Guyanese families, contrasting domestic neglect with recent state initiatives accommodating foreign migrants:
- Disregard for Citizens’ Welfare: Baldeo lamented that indigenous Guyanese travelers and grieving families were left feeling abandoned during the initial crisis response, describing their treatment by authorities as degrading and detached.
- Root Causes in Administrative Negligence: The former magistrate argued that the tragedy was the predictable culmination of chronic institutional failures, including substandard vessel maintenance, compromised safety protocols, and the alleged misallocation of public funds earmarked for modernizing the state’s aging river ferry fleet.
- Slow Emergency Interventions: He described the initial executive response as sluggish and lacking urgent, visible leadership at the disaster site.
“The kind of treatment given to our people is also very concerning,” Baldeo stated. “Here you have your own Guyanese folks entitled to their birthright, and yet you’re treating them like stray dogs, like wild animals… This will be a legacy that the government should be careful about, because that could actually cause them to lose the next elections. I will tell them that you have dropped the ball.”
Prosecutorial Scapegoating and Flawed Charges
Drawing on his background as a former Police Legal Advisor and Senior State Counsel, Baldeo criticized the Director of Public Prosecutions’ (DPP) filing of criminal charges against three Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) junior crew members:
- Absence of Murderous Intent: Baldeo pointed out that charging crew members weeks after the incident—allegedly referencing traces of cannabis or procedural infractions—does not meet the legal threshold for homicidal malice or intent.
- Deflection from Executive Blame: He asserted that the charges serve primarily as a political diversion designed to insulate high-ranking transport officials, maritime regulators, and policymakers from administrative and operational culpability.
“To bring a charge, weeks after the fact, directed at three people who may have had marijuana in their system or whatever—that in itself is not murderous intent,” Baldeo argued. “You have to prove the intention to commit murder. It seems as if these men were made scapegoats and a diversion away from the critical issue.”
Call for Independent Restructuring of the COI
Rejecting the current composition of the Commission of Inquiry (COI) established to probe the disaster at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), Baldeo cited perceived conflicts of interest and a deficit of public trust, calling for an immediate multi-partisan restructuring:
- Maritime Legal Expertise: Baldeo advocated for the immediate inclusion of qualified technocrats, specifically pointing to Opposition MP Amanza Walton, who holds a Master of Laws (LL.M.) in Maritime Law.
- Cross-Party Representation: To ensure impartiality and widespread democratic legitimacy, he proposed that the inquiry panel include designated representatives nominated by parliamentary opposition groups, including A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) and We Invest in Nationhood (WIN).
- Statutory Overhaul: Baldeo concluded by demanding sweeping legislative reforms, independent vessel sea-worthiness inspections, and strict regulatory enforcement to restore human dignity and safeguard national maritime transit.
“For example, you have an MP, Amanza Walton… She has a master’s, I think, in maritime law; she should be sitting on that commission,” Baldeo submitted. “You should have somebody from WIN, somebody from APNU—a representative from each political party sitting on that commission.”
