VAMED Engineering, which is locked in an arbitration and Court battle with the Guyana Government over the Pediatric hospital project, has condemned the seizure of four of its vehicles by the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), describing the action as unlawful.

The company’s attorney Nigel Hughes said GRA representatives seized three trucks and one car earlier this week belonging to the company.

According to Hughes, GRA Customs Enforcement was asked during the seizure to identify the legal authority for the action and provide supporting documentation.

However, he said the officer failed to identify the applicable law or produce any documents establishing the legal basis for the seizure.

Hughes further stated that the officer was unable to produce evidence of any prior notices or demands issued by the GRA to VAMED concerning the vehicles.

He said he also informed the officer that the dispute was already the subject of ongoing arbitration proceedings under the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Arbitration Rules, and cautioned against taking any action that could interfere with the jurisdiction of the arbitrators.

VAMED’s institutional representative in Guyana, Dr. João Pedro da Silva Teles, described the seizure as a serious escalation in the dispute.

“This brazen seizure of VAMED’s private property marks a serious escalation in this dispute, and one that will not go uncontested,” Teles said.

He suggested that the action was connected to questions VAMED had been raising publicly about the Government’s handling of the hospital projects, particularly the use of public funds and delays in completing the facilities.

“It is becoming increasingly clear that the government is uncomfortable with the difficult but legitimate questions we have been raising publicly about its handling of these hospital projects,” he said.

VAMED maintains that the seizure represents an unjustified interference with its private property rights and said it intends to explore and pursue all available legal remedies.

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