Statement by Minister Valerie Adams-Yearwood

─ Minister within the Ministry of Housing

DPI, Guyana, Monday, April 15, 2019

Fellow Guyanese, I present the following information to provide clarity and to set the record straight with regard to allegations made against my family and me.

My husband, Mr. Godfrey Yearwood, is a well-known and longstanding contractor for over 33 years. He was contracted by the Central Housing and Planning Authority (CHPA) to construct (1) duplex unit, (2) single elevated units and (2) units for the differently-abled. This represents (3) contracts, all signed in 2017, with the final one signed in December 2017. Prior to that, he was contracted early 2017 along with another contractor to do rehabilitation works at the Linden office to which both contractors were highly commended (publicly) by the CEO, Mr. Lelon Saul.

Mr. Yearwood currently has (1) contract outstanding which will conclude in (2) weeks.

I had no input whatsoever, with regard to the award of these contracts. I became knowledgeable of same when Mr. Yearwood informed me directly.

Like all other contractors, every contract that Mr. Yearwood has received was done through the official bidding process.  Every contract that was/is engaged in was awarded by the competent authority – the Board of Directors of CHPA, of which I am not a member.  Like all other contractors, Mr. Yearwood is subject to the same rules and regulations, without exception.

Collecting Monies

There is absolutely no truth to the unfounded allegation that I collected any monies on behalf of my husband. I have never collected any cash or cheque(s) on behalf of Yearwood Contracting & Consultancy Company. It is a total falsehood. During my travels for medical reasons, Mr. Yearwood authorised Mr. Delroy Anthony to sign for cheques that became payable during Mr. Yearwood’s absence.

Presiding over contracts

I do not preside over any aspect of the contract award process. The selection of contractors, the awarding of and/or the termination of contracts are outside my remit as Minister. I had no involvement in the (pre or post) award of the contracts to my husband or any other contractor.

In 2017, as part of the effort to promote the Housing Solutions 2017 and Beyond Project, I was present at the symbolic signing ceremony for contractors that had been pre-qualified to build houses for the Housing Expo. Two of the contractors signed their documents that day. All aspects of the selection and award processes had been completed by the competent authority. My presence was purely ceremonial. The other time that I would have spoken with contractors would have been to discuss policy matters and share our expectations with regard to meeting deadlines and quality standards.

Indebtedness to sub-contractor

As far as I know, a sub-contractor, by the name of Mr. Desmond Murphy, was engaged by Mr. Yearwood in 2018. During the period of (6) weeks, while we were overseas, the sub-contractor did a lot of substandard work which was rejected by CH&PA as well as several materials which were purchased by Mr. Yearwood and left in possession of Mr. Murphy could not be accounted for. The defective works had to be corrected by the Contractor Mr. Yearwood using his own finances. The sub-contractor, therefore, could not be paid for those works.

I trust that the foregoing has set the record straight on this matter.