VPAC Challenges Government’s “Surface Level” Accountability Following REO Removals
By Antonio Dey | HGP Nightly News|
GEORGETOWN, GUYANA – Francis Bailey, an executive member of the Vigilant Political Action Committee (VPAC), is taking aim at the government’s latest accountability drive, branding the recent reshuffling and removal of officials as “surface-level” gestures that lack the teeth of true anti-corruption enforcement.
The critique follows a high-level meeting convened by President Irfaan Ali and Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo with newly appointed Regional Executive Officers (REOs), Permanent Secretaries, and officials from the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB). While the administration framed the session as a push for transparency and fiscal prudence, Bailey argues that the public deserves more than just administrative “stop-and-start” measures.
Speaking to Nightly News, Bailey asserted that if public officials are found to be misusing procurement procedures or funnelling contracts to friends and relatives, simply removing them from their posts is a “superficial remedy.”
“What happens next?” Bailey questioned. “In any other democratic country that means business when it comes to being anti-corruption, removal from office cannot be the end of the matter. The public deserves to know the reasons behind the reshuffling because we are paying these people; they are there to serve our interest. This is not a private corporation.”
Bailey suggested that the government’s own actions serve as a tacit admission that corruption has become deeply entrenched within the state’s governance structure. He characterized the recent warnings and dismissals as “convulsions in a broken system,” suggesting that the administration is struggling to address the scale of the problem without dismantling its own internal networks.
“Corruption is so entrenched that they can’t root it out without breaking up the whole government and a lot of people going to jail,” Bailey claimed.
According to VPAC, the true test of the government’s integrity lies in what follows these dismissals. Bailey highlighted three critical requirements for real accountability:
- Full Disclosure: Informing the public of the specific allegations and findings that led to the removals.
- Robust Investigations: Launching formal probes into suspected criminal or unlawful conduct.
- Prosecutions: Pursuing legal action through the courts where evidence of wrongdoing is found.
Without these steps, Bailey fears the latest measures will be perceived as “removals without consequences,” allowing officials to exit the public stage without facing the legal ramifications of their alleged actions. As the new REOs take up their posts, VPAC maintains that the shadow of past misconduct will remain until a transparent legal process is allowed to run its course.
