Sherwyn Greaves assures Govt his sources of funding legitimate – VP

Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo has revealed that former Chief Executive Officer of the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CH&PA) Sherwyn Greaves – who resigned earlier this week amid allegations of corruption and collision – has assured that his sources of funding for his properties are legitimate.

“Sherywn Greaves will have to answer and give credible answers for the acquisition for any of his properties…We asked Sherwyn Greaves when this issue surfaced…and he assured us that the sources of his funding are legitimate and every transaction he’s done is legal,” Jagdeo said during his press conference on Thursday.

A complaint was also filed against Greaves at the US Department of Justice (DOJ). The complainant – owner of Church’s Chicken in Guyana, Terrence Campbell – asked the DOJ to launch an investigation into Greaves’ alleged purchase of a US$770,000 New York home last year.

Campbell alleged that the sale was facilitated by a close relative of convicted real-estate businessman Edul ‘Ed’ Ahmad.

The Department of Justice was asked to investigate the seeming “quid pro quo” for favours to be granted in Guyana in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), in which Ahmad recently purchased prime real estate in Guyana at alleged reduced price from the CHPA.

One such purchase had to do with the sale of 30 acres of land in Ogle – near ExxonMobil’s headquarters – to a company owned by Ahmad.

The Housing Ministry has since explained that the transaction is above board and that the $30 million per acre price tag was standard and had been in place for years, even under the previous APNU+AFC Government.

Jagdeo has since made it clear that if Greaves and Ahmad broke the law, “they must face the consequences”.

However, he noted that Greaves’ resignation is because “he can’t handle the vilification anymore”.

In a statement confirming his resignation, Greaves noted that his decision “is a deeply personal one made after consulting with my family. It stems from various posts on social media directed at me personally.”

Greaves also noted that “my resignation is purely a personal choice and in no way an admission of guilt. Everything I have achieved has been through hard work and can be fully justified.”