DEA office for September rollout

… three agents to be assigned

By Vahnu Manikchand

The much-anticipated establishment of a US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) office in Guyana is likely to happen by September, a senior US Embassy official has said. The official also confirmed that three agents and an administrative officer will staff the office, which will be located at the US Embassy, in Duke Street Kingston, Georgetown.

Amid spiralling narcotics trafficking in Guyana, stakeholders believe that the United States’ move to set up the office will help break up local drug networks, but they also believe earlier interventions could have prevented the spread of the narcotics trade to the point where Guyana is considered a transshipment point. The increased level of gun violence and other crimes have been tied to the drug trade.

Corruption and fraud

In one of its recent annual State Department International Narcotics Control Strategy Reports, Washington said Guyana was neither an important regional nor an offshore financial centre, nor does it have any free trade zones. However, the scale of money laundering is thought to be large relative to the size of the economy. The US Government had said that money laundering has been linked to trafficking in drugs, firearms, and persons, as well as to corruption and fraud. It noted that drug trafficking and money laundering appear to be benefiting the Guyanese economy, particularly the construction sector. The US said Guyana was a transshipment point for cocaine destined for North America, Europe, and the Caribbean, noting that the Guyana Government was yet to implement a National Drug Strategy Master Plan.

In an invited comment to Guyana Times International, Shadow Home Affairs Minister and Former Commissioner of Police, Winston Felix, said the DEA Office is long overdue in Guyana. “The DEA Office will assist us greatly, because they will link with the Guyana Police Force and the other drug enforcement agencies. Sharing of information ought to be a little freer and I know the difficulties which confront the drug enforcement agencies would be easier handled by the presence of a drug enforcement agency,” he stated.

Felix, who is now a Member of Parliament for A Partnership for National Unity (APNU), went on to say that Guyana would not have been in such a bad state as it relates to drug trafficking had the office been established much earlier.