In a letter to the press, former head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and environmental engineer Dr. Vincent Adams accused President Irfaan Ali and Attorney General Anil Nandlall of betraying the nation by enacting the contentious Oil Pollution Prevention, Preparedness, Response and Responsibility Bill—legislation he argues is intended to undermine a key court ruling and reduce ExxonMobil’s financial liability in the event of an oil spill.
Dr. Adams condemned President Ali for assenting to the bill despite “numerous troubling concerns and forebodings” raised by legal experts in Guyana, the Caribbean, and internationally. He noted in particular a “scathing rebuke” from the Commonwealth Lawyers Association, which accused the government of breaching international obligations under the Escazú Agreement, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, and the Treaty of Chaguaramas.
Justice Sandil Kissoon’s decision
Adams argued that the President “abdicated” his constitutional responsibility in favour of what he called the “ignorance and disloyalty” of Attorney General Anil Nandlall, whom he accused of pushing the bill for one reason alone: to overturn Justice Sandil Kissoon’s decision upholding the requirement for unlimited financial liability in oil spill coverage.
High Court Justice Sandil Kissoon ruled that ExxonMobil had “engaged in a disingenuous attempt” to weaken its obligations under the environmental permit for Liza One—the project that launched Guyana’s oil production in 2019.
In his decision, Justice Kissoon ordered Exxon to provide Guyanese authorities with a liability agreement from an insurance company by June 10. This agreement must cover potential damages from incidents such as oil spills. Failure to comply would result in the suspension of the Liza One environmental permit.
Exxon has since appealed the ruling, and the Government of Guyana has joined the oil company in its legal challenge against the case, which was brought by citizens Godfrey Whyte and Frederick Collins against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Referencing the 2010 Macondo disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, which cost an estimated US$145 billion—nearly 30 times Guyana’s annual budget—Adams credited Justice Kissoon with blocking the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C)’s attempt to cap Exxon’s liability at US$2 billion, a move the judge described as placing the nation at risk of “calamitous disaster” and “financial bankruptcy.”
Harbouring contempt for the judiciary
In his letter, Adams quoted Justice Kissoon’s ruling, which criticised the government’s “submissive” approach to ExxonMobil and its failure to enforce the conditions of its own permits, calling the Environmental Protection Agency “derelict, pliant and submissive.”
Adams further accused Nandlall of harbouring contempt for the judiciary, pointing to statements made in Parliament in which the AG defended the new bill by questioning a judge’s ruling:
- “Must we allow decisions to remain on record that doesn’t make sense in law?”
- “Must we be allowed to remain frustrated by an ill-informed decision by court?”
- “It would [have] been highly irresponsible to leave that decision on the public record.”
- “That decision distorts the law of the country.”
“This naked motive to nullify the Judicial Branch could not have been made any clearer,” Adams said, adding that Nandlall’s statements expose a dangerous trend of executive overreach and disregard for constitutional separation of powers. “Such action inflicts a troubling assault on the democracy of Guyana,” he wrote.
Dr. Adams also criticised Nandlall’s public defence of the bill as incoherent, accusing him of contradicting himself over whether the legislation imposes a liability cap. He cited Nandlall claiming both that there is “no limit” to liability and, minutes later, that “there is no such thing as unlimited liability.”
“Is this for real that our supposed learned AG does not comprehend the simple English language that ‘no limit’ or ‘no cap’ means the same as ‘unlimited’?” Adams asked.
He mocked Nandlall for arguing that the Parent Company Guarantee remains intact—despite it being synonymous with unlimited liability, the very principle the AG appeared to reject. “This man is stupidly arguing with himself,” Adams wrote. “It is embarrassingly obvious that this supposed learned AG either did not read the permits or the Judge’s Decision; or, he does not understand what he reads – Po Guyana!”
Adams ended the letter by challenging Nandlall—who has yet to respond to previous calls—for a public debate on the bill. “Now that I understand why [he’s gone into hiding], I would still love for him to provide a substitute such as VP Jagdeo or his other bossman Routledge.”
