Government considering appeal in RAMPS Logistics local content case

Last Friday, Acting Chief Justice Roxane George ordered the Director of the Local Content Secretariat, Martin Pertab to issue Ramps Logistics (Guyana) with a Local Content Certificate no later than 12 noon today.

Government considering appeal in RAMPS Logistics local content case

Moments after the Local Content Secretariat issued a Local Content Certificate to Ramps Logistics (Guyana), in keeping with a Court order, the Ministry of Natural Resources announced that while the Government has followed the Court’s ruling, it is considering an appeal.

“The Government of Guyana respects the rule of law and the independence of the judiciary and therefore will comply with the ruling. However, there are strong concerns by the Ministry of Natural Resources as to the eligibility of this particular application for local content certification. As such, the government is currently exploring all available options including an appeal of the ruling,” the Natural Resources Ministry said in a statement.

Last Friday, Acting Chief Justice Roxane George ordered the Director of the Local Content Secretariat, Martin Pertab to issue Ramps Logistics (Guyana) with a Local Content Certificate no later than 12 noon today.

In her ruling, the Acting Chief Justice said the Local Content Secretariat breached the Local Content Act when it refused to issue Ramps Logistics with a Certificate of Registration though it had reached the 51% requirement with regards to Guyanese ownership.

“The applicant has satisfied the statutory requirements and preconditions necessary for the grant or issuance of a certificate of registration under Section 6 (2) of the Local Content Act,” the Chief Justice ruled while adding that both the Natural Resources Minister Vickram Bharrat and the Local Content Secretariat have breached the Act.

But though the Secretariat has complied with the ruling, the Government is of the opinion that Ramps Logistics is not deserving of the Local Content Certificate.  

The Ministry also revealed today that the company has settled its cases with the Guyana Revenue Authority.

“The Government of Guyana also noted the recent settlement by the company and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) on the matter of tax evasion as well as the ongoing litigations in ten (10) false tax declarations to the GRA,” the statement said.

RAMPS Logistics has been operating in Guyana for the past nine years.

You must be logged in to post a comment Login