Carib Scope

标签： Guyana

圭亚那

  • Ali congratulates re-elected Brazilian president

    Ali congratulates re-elected Brazilian president

    On the evening of Sunday, 25 October 2026, Guyanese Head of State President Irfaan Ali released an official statement extending warm congratulations to Brazil’s veteran leader Luiz Inácio “Lula” da Silva, following his confirmed victory in a fiercely contested presidential runoff that secures him a landmark fourth term leading the South American nation.

    Official results verified by Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court, announced at 9:13 PM local Brasilia time (00:13 GMT), confirmed Lula captured 51% of the popular vote, equivalent to over 51.49 million ballots, with more than 96% of all votes tabulated. His right-wing challenger Flávio Bolsonaro, son of former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro, garnered 48.68% of the vote, totaling 48.8 million ballots, capping a divisive campaign cycle that drew widespread international scrutiny.

    In his public address, President Ali — a key U.S. strategic partner across the Caribbean and northern South America — emphasized that the two nations’ longstanding ties rooted in mutual respect, shared regional priorities and cross-border cooperation would only deepen under Lula’s new administration. The Guyanese leader specifically highlighted shared goals of advancing regional integration across Latin America and the Caribbean, expanding reciprocal trade and investment flows, upholding collective commitments to sustainable development, and driving inclusive prosperity for communities across the Western Hemisphere. Ali framed Lula’s re-election as a critical democratic milestone for Brazil, noting the result creates a clear mandate for the incumbent to build on policy progress from his prior tenure and expand equitable opportunity for all Brazilian citizens.

    The runoff election cycle drew global attention for starkly contrasting foreign policy platforms: Bolsonaro’s campaign had pledged to realign Brazil even more closely with Washington’s geopolitical priorities, while Lula publicly pushed back against any U.S. interference in Brazil’s domestic electoral processes, repeatedly asserting that Brazil would never accept being sidelined as a subordinate “backyard” for any external power.

    The General Secretariat of the Organization of American States (OAS) also issued an official statement late Sunday, with Secretary General Albert Ramdin commending Brazilian voters for their record-high turnout in the second round of polling, framing the strong participation rate as a clear demonstration of the public’s commitment to civic duty, peaceful electoral conduct and core democratic values. Ramdin confirmed that the OAS will continue partnering with Lula’s incoming administration to advance a unified, forward-looking hemispheric agenda focused on collective peace and shared prosperity, adding that the OAS’s on-the-ground Election Observation Mission will release a preliminary post-runoff report outlining targeted, actionable improvements to further strengthen Brazil’s already robust electoral framework.

  • Lula holds off far right with victory in Brazil presidential election

    Lula holds off far right with victory in Brazil presidential election

    Brasília, Brazil – In a landmark upset that rewrote modern Brazilian political history, incumbent left-wing President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has claimed a narrow but decisive victory over far-right Senator Flavio Bolsonaro in the 2026 Brazilian presidential runoff, defying widespread expectations after trailing his challenger in the first round of voting held October 4.

    Brazil’s Superior Electoral Court officially projected Lula as the victor at 9:13 p.m. local time (00:13 GMT) on election night, with more than 96% of all national ballots tabulated. Final partial tallies showed Lula capturing 51% of the popular vote, totaling 51.49 million valid ballots, while Bolsonaro secured 48.68% of the vote, or 48.8 million ballots. The outcome marks the first time in Brazil’s post-democratization electoral record that a presidential candidate lost the initial round of voting and rebounded to win the second-round runoff.

    The election day process was not without controversy, as multiple opposition-aligned advocacy groups documented allegations of targeted voter suppression, including unannounced suspensions of public transit routes in working-class neighborhoods that traditionally lean toward Lula’s progressive base. Compounding logistical hurdles, widespread heavy rainfall across large swathes of the country disrupted travel for millions of voters, prompting both the Lula and Bolsonaro campaigns to file joint petitions with the Brazilian Supreme Court to extend polling hours. The court ultimately approved a two-hour extension, keeping all national voting sites open until 7 p.m. Brasília time (22:00 GMT).

    The runoff victory cements Lula’s hold on the presidency of Latin America’s largest and most economically powerful nation, delivering a major setback to a regional right-wing resurgence that had seen conservative candidates win presidential contests in Peru, Colombia, Argentina, Bolivia and Ecuador in recent years. Many of those newly installed right-wing leaders had aligned closely with U.S. President Donald Trump, who returned to office in January 2025.

    At 80 years old, Lula, a former metalworkers’ union organizer who first entered politics in the final years of Brazil’s military dictatorship in the 1980s, will be sworn in for his fourth non-consecutive presidential term on January 5, 2027, breaking his own previous record as the oldest head of state to take office since Brazil restored democratic rule in 1985. He has now run for the Brazilian presidency seven times total, previously serving two consecutive terms from 2002 to 2010 and a third term following the razor-tight 2022 election against former far-right president Jair Bolsonaro – Flavio Bolsonaro’s father. The elder Bolsonaro is currently serving a 27-year prison sentence for his role in a 2023 plot to overturn the 2022 election results and stage a military coup.

    Heading into the October 4 first round, pre-election polling had shown Lula with a slim marginal lead, but he underperformed projections to take only 45% of the vote against Flavio Bolsonaro’s 47%, leaving both candidates short of the 50% threshold required to win the presidency outright. Over the intervening three-week runoff campaign period, Lula’s team pivoted sharply to center working-class cost-of-living priorities, rallying voters around a landmark constitutional amendment passed earlier in October that shortened Brazil’s standard workweek, alongside a popular policy proposal to roll out fully free weekend public transit across all major urban centers.

    Despite his historic win, Lula enters his fourth term facing significant structural challenges. While his third administration delivered sharp reductions in national poverty rates and sustained low unemployment, widespread surges in household indebtedness left millions of Brazilian households reporting worsening financial precarity, prompting Lula’s administration to implement a nationwide ban on unregulated online gambling and sports betting apps in September 2026 to curb consumer financial harm. He also faces sustained public scrutiny over his advanced age, national public safety crises linked to rising gang violence, and deeply entrenched partisan polarization across the country. Most notably, the incoming national Congress sworn in alongside Lula in January will be the most heavily right-leaning legislative body Brazil has seen in decades, creating major legislative gridlock risks that could block many of his signature progressive policy priorities from advancing.

  • CARICOM ex-leaders rally nations for UN vote to crush US Cuba embargo

    CARICOM ex-leaders rally nations for UN vote to crush US Cuba embargo

    On October 24, 2026, a group of nine former Caribbean Community (CARICOM) heads of government, led by ex-Guyana President Donald Ramotar, released a unified public statement calling on every nation across the globe to reject ongoing U.S. lobbying and coercive tactics, and cast their votes in favor of an upcoming United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution that would formally demand an end to Washington’s decades-long economic, commercial and financial embargo against Cuba. The high-stakes global vote is scheduled to take place on October 28, 2026. The distinguished cohort of signatories also includes Freundel Stuart, former Prime Minister of Barbados; Said Musa, former Prime Minister of Belize; Dr. Keith Mitchell and Tillman Thomas, both former Prime Ministers of Grenada; Bruce Golding and P.J. Patterson, two ex-Prime Ministers of Jamaica; and Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, former Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Notably, Ramotar’s public advocacy for the Cuban cause comes at a time when the current People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPPC) administration in Guyana, the same left-leaning party he once led during his presidential tenure, has effectively severed the longstanding friendly diplomatic ties between Georgetown and Havana, while simultaneously forging unprecedented deep partnerships with the U.S. across military, security, economic and political domains. Sitting Guyana President Irfaan Ali has previously made public statements advocating for gradual, incremental political shifts toward rule of law, multi-party democracy and expanded personal freedoms within Cuba. In their joint communiqué, the group of mostly left and centre-left former regional leaders emphasized that the long-running U.S. embargo against Cuba fundamentally contravenes established international legal frameworks, as well as every universally recognized civilized standard for human dignity and equitable coexistence. They stressed that this year’s UNGA vote carries unprecedented urgency, as the administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump has recently intensified restrictive trade measures targeting the Caribbean island nation. In recent months, the U.S. government has escalated its extraterritorial third-party sanctions, imposing punitive measures against any foreign government, business or organization that supplies, sells or transports energy products including gasoline and diesel to Cuba. The former CARICOM leaders argue that these measures are deliberately designed to deprive ordinary Cuban citizens of critical resources and coerce the population into political submission. The signatories went on to state that Washington’s persistent disregard for repeated overwhelming UNGA votes calling for an end to the embargo represents a total rejection of the international community’s collective will, basic norms of international law and foundational civilizational principles. They characterized the U.S. unilateral coercive measures as patently inhumane, noting that the ongoing embargo poses a tangible threat to cross-hemisphere and global peace and security, constitutes a flagrant violation of Cuba’s inherent rights to national sovereignty and independent self-determination, and systematically erodes the basic fundamental human rights of the Cuban people that are enshrined in binding international legal conventions. The group further asserted that these U.S. actions amount to a rejection of rules-based global governance, representing a return to the unprincipled “law of the jungle” that cannot be justified under the United Nations Charter or any established framework of international justice. The former regional leaders also highlighted that Cuba poses no credible military or security threat to any country or individual anywhere on the planet, and called on all member states of the United Nations to contribute to healing the long-running diplomatic rift between the U.S. and Cuba by voting in support of the upcoming resolution. They closed their public appeal with a rousing call for global solidarity, urging all nations to “stand with Cuba and with shared humanity” when the measure comes before the General Assembly later that week.

  • Guyanese reporter ordered deported from British Virgin Islands after forged document conviction

    Guyanese reporter ordered deported from British Virgin Islands after forged document conviction

    ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI – A veteran Guyanese journalist with more than 10 years of professional ties to the British Virgin Islands, Cathyoliva O. Richards, faces mandatory expulsion from the territory more than a year after her conviction on a charge of uttering forged documents. The official deportation directive was signed by Governor Daniel Pruce on October 20, 2026, and formalized as Statutory Instrument 2026 No. 63, which was published in the territory’s Official Gazette on October 22, 2026. The order requires Richards to depart the Virgin Islands within 30 days of being formally served a copy of the document, and to remain excluded from the territory permanently thereafter.

    Richards, who has served as a senior reporter for local outlet Japhix Entertainment (JTV) since 2016, first faced legal scrutiny alongside production assistant Hitesh Yadram over falsified materials submitted to the Department of Labour and Workforce Development as part of 2021 work permit renewal applications. Prosecutors presented 18 pieces of evidence during the High Court trial, including three forged social security earnings certificates: one submitted on Richards’ behalf and two linked to Yadram. A senior staff member from the Social Security Board (SSB), Lisa McIntosh Bobb, testified that the signatures on the three documents were forgeries, despite bearing a close visual resemblance to her official signature. The falsified paperwork also contained a conspicuous typo, with the word “certificate” misspelled across all three submitted copies, according to evidence presented to the jury.

    Following roughly three hours of deliberation, a nine-member jury composed entirely of women delivered their split verdict: Yadram was acquitted on all counts, while Richards was found guilty on the single charge of uttering forged documents. Both defendants remained stoic as the verdicts were read aloud in court, but Richards broke down in tears immediately after the jury was dismissed and Yadram exited the courtroom. On January 16, 2026, High Court Justice Angelica Teelucksingh handed Richards a two-year fully suspended prison sentence, rather than immediate jail time. Prior to her sentencing, Richards had been granted extended bail under strict conditions, including a $30,000 bond, mandatory surrender of all travel documents, and a requirement to check in with the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force every Tuesday. The deportation order marks the final official administrative penalty levied against the well-known local journalist for her role in the 2021 document fraud scheme.

  • University of Guyana advances circular economy action as marine litter prevention project ends in Guyana

    University of Guyana advances circular economy action as marine litter prevention project ends in Guyana

    On October 14, 2026, a formal closing ceremony hosted at Grand Coastal Inn Hotel on East Coast Demerara marked the official end of the on-the-ground implementation phase of the Prevention of Marine Litter in the Caribbean Sea (PROMAR) project in Guyana, following a day-long Circular Economy Expo held earlier that week at the University of Guyana’s Turkeyen Campus. Spearheaded locally by the University of Guyana’s Faculty of Earth and Environmental Sciences (FEES), the multi-stakeholder initiative was funded by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Climate Action, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety, and delivered through a collaborative partnership between adelphi’s Green and Circular Economy division, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Cartagena Convention Secretariat, Guyana’s Environmental Protection Agency, and dozens of cross-sector local stakeholders. Over its implementation period, PROMAR targeted the pervasive flow of land-based single-use and packaging plastic waste that seeps into local rivers, coastal habitats, and eventually the wider Caribbean Sea, deploying a holistic framework that combines rigorous waste monitoring, community-led circular economy pilots, national policy advisory support, widespread public awareness campaigns, and cross-sector partnership building to replace linear “use-and-discard” material management systems. The October 13 Circular Economy Expo served as a hands-on showcase of the project’s tangible deliverables, displaying community upcycled goods, demonstrations of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic processing, and the newly deployed equipment distributed to local partners including mechanical shredders and 3D-printing filament makers that turn post-consumer waste into usable new materials. The event drew researchers, small business owners, government officials, students, community leaders, and financial sector representatives to identify new collaborative pathways to scale waste-to-value models. During the expo, PROMAR Guyana Project Lead and FEES lecturer Professor Temitope Oyedotun emphasized that the initiative’s core mission was to dismantle long-held cultural assumptions about waste, stating, “The waste will not be treated as waste, but the waste will be treated as vital resources.” Amarnath Munnolimath, Head of Green and Circular Economy at adelphi, echoed this framing by highlighting the untapped economic potential embedded in repurposed waste, noting that intentional waste reduction, value creation, and circular systems design could drive inclusive local economic growth rather than framing sustainability as a cost burden. Beyond on-the-ground waste processing pilots, the project has embedded long-term institutional capacity within Guyana’s higher education system: custom circular economy assessment courses have been developed for potential full integration into the University of Guyana’s formal curriculum, while modules for marine litter monitoring and coastal environmental management are being woven into existing related academic programs. The PROMAR team also provided technical expertise to advance national packaging waste policy, including frameworks for extended producer responsibility (EPR) that hold product manufacturers accountable for end-of-life management of their packaging, alongside contributing standardized data to regional Caribbean marine litter monitoring networks. UNEP Cartagena Convention Secretariat representative Tracy Phillips underscored that marine pollution cannot be addressed through shoreline cleanup efforts alone, noting that the root of the crisis lies in upstream decisions around product design, import rules, consumption patterns, and the absence of functional material recovery markets. At the formal closing ceremony, partners distributed appreciation awards to recognize the contributions of community volunteers, researchers, civil society groups, and government teams that supported project delivery. All lead speakers stressed that the conclusion of the formal implementation phase does not mark the end of PROMAR’s mission in Guyana. Munnolimath noted that while technical tools, research reports, and equipment provide a foundational framework, it is sustained community buy-in and cross-sector collaboration that will turn short-term project outcomes into permanent systemic change. Phillips added that the initiative’s true success will not be measured by completed deliverables at the close of funding, but by the extent to which the knowledge, partnerships, and circular systems built over the project’s lifespan continue to drive progress toward zero plastic leakage into Guyana’s marine ecosystems. For the University of Guyana, the end of the implementation phase acts as a launchpad to scale the tested circular economy models, expand multi-stakeholder partnerships, and advance the national transition away from linear waste management toward a regenerative system that supports cleaner inland communities and a healthier Caribbean marine environment.

  • Chevron opted out of funding deep-water port’s engineering and design

    Chevron opted out of funding deep-water port’s engineering and design

    GEORGETOWN, Guyana – Oct 23, 2026 – U.S. global engineering and procurement giant Bechtel has confirmed that energy major Chevron opted out of further funding for the front-end engineering and design phase of a planned $1 billion to $2 billion deep-water port development in Guyana, shortly after completing its acquisition of Hess’ regional assets. The ambitious port scheme, which was initially backed by Hess, is currently evaluating two potential sites: Crab Island, situated at the mouth of the Berbice River, and the previously proposed CGX shorebase location.

    Speaking during a panel session at the World Trade Centre Guyana, Bechtel’s Country Manager for Guyana Harry Pastuszek revealed that the firm had finalized a full pre-front-end engineering and design (pre-FEED) assessment for the port two years prior, with Hess having contributed $4 million to cover the cost of those initial feasibility evaluations. The original terms of the partnership outlined that Hess would continue co-funding subsequent development stages in collaboration with the Government of Guyana, a commitment that Chevron declined to honor after taking over Hess’ operations. Pastuszek emphasized the firm held no negative sentiment toward Chevron’s decision, framing it as a routine corporate strategic reassessment following a large-scale acquisition.

    In the wake of Chevron’s withdrawal, the Guyanese government has now contracted independent advisory firm Cross Boundary Group to deliver an updated feasibility study, which revises and expands on 2016 foundational research conducted by the Inter-American Development Bank. The core objective of this updated analysis is to map out how the proposed Atlantic deep-water port can serve as a critical trade gateway for landlocked northern Brazilian regions, including the industrial hub of Manaus. Jamie McInerney, Deputy Head of Latin America and Caribbean Investment Advisory at Cross Boundary Group, explained that the ongoing study is compiling granular operational and market data to calculate the port’s projected cargo throughput, revenue streams, and long-term cash flow, to formally verify the commercial bankability of the high-cost infrastructure. McInerney noted that the port, linked to a planned new road corridor connecting the Guyana-Brazil border to the coast, would create a far more time-efficient and reliable shipping route for manufactured goods moving out of northern Brazil, compared to existing overland and riverine pathways.

    U.S. Embassy Senior Commercial Officer Bruce Ellsworth announced during the same panel that the U.S. Export-Import Bank, the federal government’s official export credit agency, has already submitted a formal letter of interest to the Guyanese government to provide financing for the port’s phase three full engineering design study, a $50 million process that is expected to kick off immediately after the current feasibility assessment is finalized. Additional potential funding support has also been flagged by Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali, who recently confirmed that Qatar has expressed willingness to contribute unspecified levels of investment toward the port’s eventual physical construction.

    Local Guyanese shipping industry leader Chandradat Chintamani noted that to unlock the port’s full operational value, the development will need to be paired with a 100-kilometer dedicated cargo superhighway connecting the Berbice port zone directly to the national capital Georgetown. The broader industrial plan for the port’s surrounding region also includes government-backed incentives to attract data centers, fertilizer manufacturing facilities, and a potential oil refinery, all located in close proximity to ExxonMobil’s Longtail energy project, which is slated to produce 1.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas and 290,000 barrels of condensate per day at full operation.

  • Man charged with murder of 6-year old son

    Man charged with murder of 6-year old son

    On the afternoon of October 23, 2026, local law enforcement officials in West Coast Berbice, Guyana, confirmed that 45-year-old cane harvester Bharrat “Viji” “Crank” Jaikarran, a resident of Plantation Hope, had been formally arraigned on a common law murder charge in connection with the brutal death of his six-year-old son, Orlando Jaikarran. According to police investigative accounts, the alleged fatal incident unfolded on October 15, 2026, at the Waterloo Main Canal in Bath, West Coast Berbice, where the young child was reportedly brought to the remote waterway and attacked with a cutlass, sustaining severe wounds to the neck. Jaikarran was taken into custody by the Guyana Police Force on October 20, five days after the child’s partial remains were recovered from the canal. Responding officers found the boy’s partly decomposed, headless body at the scene, with subsequent post-mortem preliminary checks confirming the victim’s head, sections of his left hand, and his right foot were all unaccounted for. Forensic teams also recovered multiple cutlasses from the surrounding area that are undergoing testing to determine if they were used as the alleged murder weapons. During the Friday arraignment hearing held at the Weldaad Magistrate’s Court, Magistrate Shareefah Parks formally read the full indictable murder charge to Jaikarran. Per standard legal procedures for non-bailable indictable offenses in Guyana, the defendant was not asked to enter a plea at this stage of proceedings. He has been ordered to be remanded to prison custody, with the full case adjourned to November 12, 2026, and administratively transferred to the Fort Wellington Magistrate’s Court for upcoming procedural hearings.

  • Police Commissioner cannot discipline rape-accused SOCU chief–gov’ts legal opinion

    Police Commissioner cannot discipline rape-accused SOCU chief–gov’ts legal opinion

    As of Thursday, 22 October 2026, a landmark legal opinion from Guyana’s Solicitor-General has clarified critical constitutional limits on the disciplinary authority of the country’s top law enforcement official, reshaping the process for addressing misconduct allegations against a senior police leader. The opinion centers on Deputy Police Commissioner Fizal Karimbaksh, who faces serious accusations of rape and threatening misconduct from a female serving officer within the Guyana Police Force, and addresses whether Commissioner Clifton Hicken has independent power to pursue disciplinary action against his deputy.

  • Emergency response plan catered for 125 occupants of MV Barima

    Emergency response plan catered for 125 occupants of MV Barima

    GEORGETOWN, GUYANA – October 22, 2026 – In testimony before the public Commission of Inquiry (COI) investigating the July 19 capsizing of the MV Barima ferry that killed more than 100 people, Marine Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) Coordinator John Flores has defended the existing national emergency response framework, arguing it was sufficient to handle the disaster that unfolded 10 miles off Guyana’s Essequibo Coast.

    The MV Barima, an 87-year-old vessel dating back to Guyana’s colonial era, was traveling from Georgetown to Port Kaituma when it capsized, becoming one of the deadliest maritime disasters in the country’s recent history. In the chaotic immediate aftermath of the tragedy, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill initially cited a passenger manifest putting the total number of people on board at 133 (116 passengers and 17 crew). That figure was later revised to 179 after surveillance footage revealed dozens of unlisted passengers who had boarded the ferry. On Thursday, Flores publicly confirmed the government’s official revised count of 125 occupants for the first time during his COI testimony.

    To date, law enforcement and civilian rescue teams have pulled 69 survivors from the water and recovered 71 bodies. The ferry’s captain and first mate have been formally charged with the murder of 76 passengers who died in the incident.

    Flores, a former Commander of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard with extensive international search and rescue training, acknowledged that there is no specific emergency response plan tailored for ferries operated by the Ministry of Public Works’ Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD). When pressed by COI lawyer Arudranauth Gossai on whether the existing plan – developed for a potential collision involving a large cruise ship carrying 9,453 people – was sufficient for the smaller ferry carrying only 125 passengers, Flores argued that the framework was still adequate. “Comparatively, the passenger counts on ferries do not exceed the capacity built into this existing plan, so we were able to mobilize resources from other government agencies to cover the response,” he explained.

    Flores went on to note that he used the existing cruise ship emergency plan as the operating blueprint for the MV Barima response, adding that the core Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for the disaster matched the needs of the ferry incident, only differing in scale of required resources. “We generally complied with nearly all required protocols outlined in the plan on the night of the disaster,” he said, noting that his team checked off each required step as the operation unfolded.

    The most significant operational challenge Flores cited during the response was inadequate on-site radio communication that prevented direct coordination with first responders at the capsizing site. He also revealed a critical gap related to the ferry’s Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB), which sent the initial distress signal via satellite to the Cheddi Jagan Airport Control Tower, which then relayed the alert to the GDF Coast Guard. Because the EPIRB was not registered, local authorities were unable to immediately identify the vessel in distress, delaying early response coordination.

    Looking ahead, Flores expressed optimism that upcoming infrastructure upgrades will resolve key communication gaps. A new integrated satellite and radio communications system is set to be commissioned next week, which will allow the MRCC to receive distress alerts directly from satellites, eliminating the intermediate step through the airport control tower. The system will also equip on-scene rescue teams with long-range communication radios to improve on-site coordination for future emergencies.

  • Former MARAD Director of Safety says ferries had no safety records during his tenure

    Former MARAD Director of Safety says ferries had no safety records during his tenure

    GEORGETOWN, Guyana – October 22, 2026 – The official inquiry into the July 18 capsizing of the MV Barima ferry has uncovered critical gaps in safety documentation for Guyana’s government-operated ferries, with a former senior maritime official admitting key certification paperwork was absent from official files when he left his post three years ago.

    Retired Captain John Flores, who previously served as Director of Maritime Safety at the Maritime Administration (MARAD) and currently coordinates the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre, testified under oath before the MV Barima Commission of Inquiry this Thursday, laying bare long-standing gaps in regulatory compliance for the nation’s public ferry fleet.

    Polish forensic marine engineer Dr. Andrzej Jasionowski, an expert participating in the inquiry, pressed Flores specifically about the absence of core safety documents including loading certificates, tonnage documentation, and Safety Of Life At Sea (SOLAS) certificates—all mandatory under international maritime regulations to ensure a vessel’s seaworthiness.

    Flores confirmed that throughout his tenure leading maritime safety at MARAD, and up to the day he departed the role three years ago, no such certification documents existed in official files or were kept on board any older government ferries. When pushed by Jasionowski to clarify whether these documents were ever required for the nation’s public ferries, Flores acknowledged he could not confirm whether certifications were issued via seaworthiness assessments or annual mandatory surveys.

    The retired captain recalled that during his time serving as Chief Inspector of Maritime Safety, he and his team of inspectors launched an effort to gather existing ferry records from the Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) and began the process of reconstructing the missing documentation archive. However, the initiative was never completed, leaving the regulatory gap unaddressed.

    When questioned specifically about safety deficiencies and certification records for the MV Barima itself, Flores said he could not recall any specific issues, directing the commission to check archived ship inspection records held by senior MARAD leadership. Those records, he noted, are currently in the possession of MARAD Director-General Stephen Thomas, who is scheduled to be the commission’s next witness.

    Commission Chairman Justice Godfrey Smith has issued a formal directive requiring Thomas to bring the full set of inspection records and related documents to his testimony, rather than only attaching copies to his prepared witness statement.

    As the line of questioning exposed the extent of the missing documentation and potential regulatory failures, Justice Smith adjourned the session briefly and advised Flores to retain independent legal counsel given his central role in the inquiry. On the outstanding question of whether Guyana’s government ferries are legally exempt from holding certain mandatory safety documentation, Flores told the commission he would need additional time to prepare a full response.