Former parliamentarian and ex-minister Annette Ferguson has warned that ordinary Guyanese are being sidelined as billions of dollars in hotel and commercial developments are fast-tracked under what she describes as an opaque and unequal investment approval system.
In a letter published this week, Ferguson said the rapid expansion of large-scale hotel projects since 2020 has unfolded with little public disclosure on ownership, concessions, land allocation and long-term sustainability, even as citizens and small businesses continue to struggle with delays and bureaucratic obstacles. She argued that the Government’s Single Window Programme appears to favour well-connected investors, while marginalising local authorities and depriving ordinary citizens of fair and transparent access to approvals. “State assets are not private property and must be managed transparently and in the public interest,” Ferguson wrote, warning that secrecy surrounding these projects undermines accountability and national interest.
Ferguson questioned who ultimately owns and controls several high-profile hotel developments, noting that branding does not equate to ownership and that beneficial owners remain largely undisclosed. She also raised concerns about the heavy reliance on Chinese contractors in major hotel projects, including the Marriott at Timehri and the AC Marriott at Ogle, as well as privately owned developments, asking whether these patterns reflect open and competitive procurement or undisclosed arrangements involving financing and construction. According to Ferguson, the public has not been informed whether feasibility studies were conducted or what financial risks the state may bear if projected demand linked to the oil sector declines.
Her latest comments are consistent with earlier public statements in which she criticised the Single Window Programme for failing to deliver efficiency for ordinary Guyanese. In previous media appearances and letters, Ferguson said the system has instead entrenched delays for citizens seeking permits for modest projects, while large investors appear to move seamlessly through approval processes. She also accused the government of applying double standards on accountability, shielding major projects and senior officials from scrutiny while demanding compliance from the public.
Ferguson warned that without transparency, competitive fairness and institutional oversight, Guyana risks entrenching a two-tier development system—one that benefits the powerful and connected, and another that leaves citizens deprived of equal opportunity. “The people of Guyana deserve answers, not platitudes,” she said, calling for full disclosure of ownership structures, concessions, land valuations and approval criteria tied to major investments.
