Attorney General defends Oil Spill Bill and dismisses criticism as ramblings

Attorney General Anil Nandlall, is not too happy with the criticism that the Government is facing over the passage of the Oil Pollution Prevention Bill, which was passed in the National Assembly last Friday.

The Opposition has argued that the Bill needs to provide clearer mechanisms for compensating those affected by oil spills, especially marginalized communities like fishermen who depend on marine resources.

The Bill has also been subject to daily scrutiny of editorials and letter writers in the local newspapers.

During his weekly “Issues in the News” programme on Tuesday, the Attorney General said there is a deliberate effort to distort the Bill.

He said the intention of the Bill is to bring the petroleum sector into closer alignment with international best practices and ensure environmental safeguards as well as to create legal clarity as it relates to liability around oil pollution.

“This bill was drafted by experts in the United States of America and sent to us, it complies with all international standards and international treaties and international laws relevant to the sector. In drafting this bill, the consultant looks at legislation in a number of different territories,” the Attorney General said.

Mr. Nandlall said every piece of legislation tabled by the Government in relation to the management of the oil sector is a landmark piece of legislation.

He described the criticism over the Bill as “rantings and rumblings”.

“The Bill meets international standards and requirements. After we receive this bill, it spent nearly a year in Guyana, going through a process of adaption to bring in conformity and in consistent with our local circumstances and then we had to consult with all the agencies and stakeholders which the bill touch and concern,” Mr. Nandlall stated.

He said before the legislation made its way to the floor of the National Assembly, similar pieces of legislation from the US, Norway, Canada and the Uk were examined and studied.

Recently, international Lawyer, Melinda Jankie wrote to the President urging him not to sign the Bill into law pointing out several flaws.

“Ms. Jankie can go and check the constitutions of other Caribbean and commonwealth territories and I challenge her to find provisions dealing with the environment as they are in the Guyana constitution. In her next letter to the public, she must find which country in the Caribbean that embraces safe environment as a right, clean environment as a right and as a fundamental freedom, the way that the Guyana constitution has it, and these people want to criticize us,” Mr. Nandlall went on to say.