The Ministry of Public Works has appointed a high-level team to investigate the allegations of misappropriations in the management of government’s asphalt.
Mr. Chateram Ramdihal has been named the team leader, while the other team members are; Ms. Heidi Gillette, Mr. Brion Singh, and Mr. Dexter Smith.
The team is expected to conduct a thorough investigation dating from 2013 to present.
The investigation is expected to be completed within one month.
The team is tasked to:
1. Investigate the veracity of the allegations.
2. Examine the systems at the Plant.
3. Find out its reliability and weaknesses which would allow for malpractices to be capitalized on.
4. Determine culpability and appropriate penalty to be meted out to those involved.
5. Provide recommendations on a way forward.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill charged the team to examine all aspects of the operation so as to get down to the last strand of detail as it relates to the allegations.
According to Minister Edghill, this special investigation into the operations of the Asphalt Plant emanated from reading an article in the media which sent a strong message that persons at the Asphalt Plant and the Ministry are reselling asphalt sold to the Government of Guyana for their own benefit. More so, Minister Edghill said, “As the subject Minister, I think this warrants closure and one of the ways we can do this, is by being objective in examining what was said without prejudice, with a clean eye, and ensuring that we have the necessary facts.”
Meanwhile, Minister within the Ministry Deodat Indar noted that the team must be transparent with each other so as to bring everything together and have a holistic approach in bringing the evidence to the forefront.
Persons who are interested in reaching out to the team can contact them via email on [email protected].
Please see the team’s experience and qualifications below:
1. Mr. Chateram Ramdihal – Team Leader
His wealth of experience was accumulated having worked as:
• An Auditor at the Office of the Auditor General
• Chief Accountant with the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, National Sports Commission
• Finance and Ticketing Manager at Guyana World Cup Inc. Cricket World Cup 2007.
• Chief Executive Officer at Cacique Inc.
• Audit Manager at Maurice Solomon & Co. and Ram & McRae
Mr. Ramdihal is a member of:
• The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
• The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Guyana (ICAG)
• The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA)
He is currently the Chief Executive Officer and Audit Partner of his own accounting and auditing firm, CHATERAM RAMDIHAL, Chartered Accountants, Professional Services Firm.
Ms. Heidi Gillette – Team Member
• Fellow Guyana Association of Professional Engineer
• Certified Project Management Professional
• Over 20 years’ experience in Construction Management
• Current Head of Inspectorate Division at the Ministry of Public Works
Brion Singh – Team Member
• Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) from Australian Institute of Business
• BSc in Civil Engineering from the University of Guyana
• Project Management Professional (PMP) from Project Management Institute (PMI)
• Technical Diploma in Building and Civil Engineer from the Government Technical Institute (GTI)
• Over 10 years of senior management experience in public sector of which 8 years was at the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation.
Dexter Smith – Team Member
• Bsc in Accounting from the University of Guyana
• Project Management Professional (PMP)
• International Certification is Supply Chain Management
• 2011 to present: Audit Manager, Ministry of Public Works
• March 2009 -2011, June 2002- 2006, Audit Senior/ Supervisor at Bank DIH Limited
• October 2008- March – March 2009, Internal Auditor/ Office Manager, Tiger Wood Guyana Limited
• June 2006- July 2008 – Inspector of Taxes in the Audit and verification Division, Guyana Revenue Authority
