The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) has entered into an agreement with a U.S. engineering company, Metal Shark, for the construction and supply of an offshore patrol vessel to the tune of US$11.5M to aid Guyana’s Coast Guard operations. The Government of Guyana (G0G) has already shelled out an initial payment of GYD 618M, says Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Governance, Gail Teixeira, with five additional payments scheduled between now and 2022. The vessel will take a year to be constructed, after which, it will be delivered to Guyana.
Ex-State Minister and retired GDF Colonel, Joseph Harmon grilled Teixeria in the National Assembly this afternoon when the payment was highlighted in a supplementary request made for funds was presented.
Harmon noted that including the procurement of such a ‘major asset’ in a supplementary request was ‘ridiculous’ and requested that the Minister explains how this arrangement is consistent with what is required for supplementary request. In other words, he implored the minister to explain what caused the procurement to become “unforeseen and unavoidable”.
Teixeira noted that with ‘incursions’ by Venezuela within the past couple of months, it was prudent to take steps to acquire the vessel, adding that the current patrol vessel, “Essequibo”, is old. The Minister also noted that the procurement of this vessel will mark the first time since Guyana’s independence (1966) that a new boat will be bought.
“This government has recognized that the Essequibo vessel has served Guyana well, but a new vessel is required,” she said while bashing the former administration for procuring “old, dilapidated, second-hand, junk aircraft” during its tenure (2015-2020).
Teixeira noted that at least four other shipbuilders were visited before the decision was taken to procure the vessel from Metal Shark.
“Guyanese should be proud that the government is building the capacity of our Coast Guard, so if there are incursions in our waters, we’ll be able to take care of ourselves better. It is not just about the border, it’s about piracy, it is about illegal fishing and so on,” she said.
Harmon then pressed the Minister to provide the “specific use” of the vessel, to which she responded, “These are defence board decisions and the Constitution, and our Standing Orders make provisions for that. Secondly, it is a Defence Board decision to acquire the vessel. The purposes of the vessel, I cannot disclose for obvious reasons. I am not going to disclose, at this forum, the use of this vessel.”
