'Missing money' talk just a big lie

THE EDITOR: I read where economist and former deputy governor of the Central Bank Dr Terrence Farrell said that Marla Dukharan’s analysis on billions of US dollars “missing” from this country is incorrect.

“Unfortunately, Marla’s analysis and explanation is not correct. Balance of payments accounting is complicated. The more recent methodologies which attempt to account for financial flows are even more so. It records not only flows that go through the banking system, but other ‘accounting’ transactions which may not be reflected in flows through the banks,” Farrell said.

He said that “Marla said some things which…quite frankly they shocked me and I think they shocked a lot of people that reached to me and asked me if it is this true…I think that is the kind of language that got people wondering what is going on. So certainly, the people who are political and so on…they were saying this is another indication of some kind of malfeasance going on."

This statement by Farrell was made in the presence of Dukharan and most certainly is a very strong opinion by a gentleman who has been proven to be quite knowledgeable in his field. I have observed since the debacle involving the Auditor General and the Minister of Finance that a specific mendacious language is being used by a particular group of people against the Government.

The Opposition has recently begun to constantly add the words "missing money" in most of their contributions. While there is no proof of missing money, and that statement being debunked by knowledgeable professionals, they continue using those words when speaking to the population. The Opposition has obviously adopted these words as an opportunity to create a false narrative in the minds of citizens.

From observing comments on social media it is quite obvious that most people read just the headlines and create an opinion based on that alone. The supporters of the UNC have grabbed the insinuation of "missing money" and ran with it. I expect those aligned with the Opposition to continue pushing that propaganda of "missing money" leading up to the general election.

The media have a great role to play in educating citizens about the country's finances. Reporters need to ask the right questions and report the truth. Leaving a sense of doubt in the minds of people is equivalent to being less than truthful.

I also urge the relevant ministry to do the same. Take the time to explain to the nation matters of interest in simple terms, or false information will spread like wild fire.

The Dukharan report is a perfect example of this. Imagine reading that billions of US dollars are unaccounted for and the Prime Minister is recorded as debunking the statement, among others. Thankfully Farrell has given an explanation as to why the words “missing money” are nothing but a big lie.

NIGEL SEENATHSINGH

San Fernando