REGIONAL: China denies allegations that Chinese companies pay bribes for contracts in Guyana

SOURCE: CMC- China Wednesday condemned what it said were attempts to “smear and attack China-Guyana cooperation” as it dismissed suggestions that some Chinese companies have been paying bribes to acquire large contracts in Guyana.

On Tuesday, the leader of the opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), Aubrey Norton, called on the police to launch an investigation into allegations by a Chinese businessman and lobbyist that he had paid bribes to Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo to facilitate Chinese business dealings here.

“I will like to call on the Guyana Police Force to investigate the allegations. It is law enforcement’s responsibility to, when allegations of this nature are made, they should investigate,’ Norton told a news conference.

Jagdeo in an interview broadcast here on Monday night, ejected claims of kickbacks to facilitate Chinese investors doing business in Guyana.

In the interview with the US-based Vice News that was broadcast on his Facebook page, Hagdeo admits helping people but denied ever taking bribes.

“I help people out but doesn’t mean for consideration. It does not mean for bribe because I believe that we have a mission to help as many as possible move forward in Guyana,” he said, while admitting that he knows a gentleman whose name is Mr. Su and who is his friend and his tenant.

But Jagdeo insisted that Su would be lying on him if he told the reporter those allegations.

Jagdeo, during the interview, accused the reporter of coming to Guyana to make someone look corrupt based on claims by an anonymous person or her fabrication

In a statement, the Chinese Embassy here referred to the “fabrication” made during the interview noting that when the journalist from Vice News interviewed Jagdeo, “she was found to come to Guyana with predetermined agenda and tried to smear and attack China-Guyana cooperation, as well as Chinese companies.

“The Chinese Embassy is strongly dissatisfied with and firmly opposed to such violation of professional ethics.”

It said China “highly appreciates that the Government of Guyana upholds the one-China principle and keeps developing cordial relations with China.

“China-Guyana friendly cooperation, featuring equality, mutual benefit, innovation, openness, and benefits for the people, is in accordance with the interests of the two countries and two peoples, not against any third party, nor should it be influenced by a third party.

“Chinese companies operating in Guyana are following the local laws, international practices, and market rules, participating in big projects through open and fair competitions, which is beyond reproach,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, negotiations for the construction of the new Demerara Harbour Bridge have shifted to the second-ranked bidder on the list of pre-qualified firms after talks between the government and China State Construction Engineering Corporation Ltd. were scrapped over the company’s high cost to build the modern structure.

The new firm is a Joint Venture (JV) company between China Railway Construction Corporation (International) Ltd., China Railway Construction (Caribbean a) Co. Ltd, and China Railway Construction Bridge Engineering Bureau Group Co. Ltd (China & Trinidad and Tobago).

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill told the online publication, News Room, that the initial company had proposed to construct the bridge at a price of US$256.6 million but upon examination of the total cost, the interest among variables was just “too high.”

“You have to look at the term sheet, the overall and that was what was kind of problematic,” the Public Works Minister told the News Room.

Edghill had also informed Parliament on Tuesday that the government has aside GUY$21 billion (One Guyana dollar=US$0.0054 cents) for the construction of the new Demerara Harbour Bridge including fair compensation to property owners.

“We have to look at the fact that you’re building this bridge and if somebody is bringing total financing and they have to recoup their financing, the price of tolls will go out of whack,” he told  legislators, adding that the amount would include Guyana’s contribution for the construction of the bridge at the best price in two years.