Guyana has approached the Organisation of American States (OAS) requesting technical support in the drafting of whistle- blower legislation. Government is interested in the development of the legislation in an effort to ensure corporations adhere to principles of governance as outlined in Guyana’s legislative framework, and shareholders’ rights are adequately protected.
Presidential Advisor on Governance, Gail Teixeira
The whistle- blower legislation offers protection from retaliatory action against persons specifically identified to report misconduct in government- run and other agencies.
Presidential Advisor on Governance, Gail Teixeira told this newspaper that there are a number of countries within the OAS which also made similar requests.
Teixeira explained that the need of countries in the OAS to have such technical assistance has been raised by the expert committee.
According to Teixeira, the draft will help in dealing with teething issues and said there have been quite a lot of discussions within the OAS about various countries with little experience in addressing the issue. However, she noted that an available draft crafted by the OAS will certainly lighten the load of the government in introducing such legislation.
Misconduct that can be reported under the whistleblower legislation includes violation of laws, rules and regulations; gross mismanagement; waste of funds; abuse of authority; or a substantial and specific danger to public health and safety.
At the seminar on Guyana’s Draft Corporate Governance Framework held by the Canadian High Commission, the Private Sector Commission (PSC) and the National Competitiveness Strategy Unit (NCSU) two years ago, Teixeira said that government has put in place a range of legislation to oversee the state sector and to create a positive framework as a model for developing nation, especially in the financial sector.
She mentioned that Guyana boasts of a Procurement Act that is rare in comparison to other Caribbean countries which utilises a ministerial order for this purpose. The advisor stressed that other legislations, which are beneficial to businesses, are still pending in relation to making transactions more hassle- free.
With technical and financial support from international organisations, Guyana has also worked to improve certain sectors, including the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and the Deeds Registry, to assist them in functioning more effectively.
Teixeira also pointed to the National Competitiveness Strategy and the Low Carbon Development (LCDS) Strategy, which she said was important to creating key policies of corporate governance. Listing CLICO, ENRON, BP and the glob al financial crisis, Teixeira commented that many countries are now even more cognisant of the significance of the state’s role in corporate behaviour.
“These crises have created a whole movement to examine the role of the state in a whole different way.
The state is used to having a more hands-off approach.
They are now looking at setting standards for corporate governance and examining the frameworks put in place to ensure they be complied with,” Teixeira noted.
The presidential advisor said Guyana is a signatory to the Inter- merican Convention against Corruption, and reports twice yearly on issues of accountability, transparency, money laundering and corruption.
The state has a huge responsibility in protecting shareholders, through legislative framework, to ensure that the decisions made by corporations are not detrimental to them, Teixeira pointed out. She added that an increase in oversight by the state is also accompanied by increased oversight by non- state stakeholders as Guyana become more interested in developing the whistle- blower legislation for companies with hidden agendas.
Former President, Bharrat Jagdeo had promised that government would conduct more training of police prosecutors to work closely with the Director of Public Prosecutions, improve the governance sector by operationalising the sectoral committee on disciplined forces, tighten stipulations on firearm licenses, and developed whistle- blower legislation.
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