Luncheon testifies in Jagdeo libel suit against KN, Kissoon
By STABROEK STAFF | LOCAL | SATURDAY, AUGUST 20, 2011

The proceedings in the $10 million libel suit filed by President Bharrat Jagdeo against Kaieteur News and its columnist Freddie Kissoon got underway yesterday, with Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon testifying that he has never seen any evidence of the president practising racism or the government pursuing any racial policies. Kissoon, Kaieteur News Editor Adam Harris and the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd, the publishers of Kaieteur News are named as defendants in the action, which was prompted by statements contained in the June 28, 2010 article, “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference.”


Roger Luncheon

Only Kissoon was present for yesterday’s proceedings, which were heard by Justice Brassington Reynolds. One of the defence lawyers, while asking for Harris to be excused, said that the owner of the newspaper Glen Lall would be arriving later. He never showed up. The trio is being represented by attorneys Nigel Hughes, Khemraj Ramjattan and Christopher Ram, while Anil Nandlall is representing Jagdeo. The proceedings got underway around 10 am, with Dr. Luncheon being called to the stand. Nandlall requested that the witness be allowed to sit while giving his evidence as a result of some medical issues. According to Dr. Luncheon he first met Jagdeo at a meeting in 1992. He said that Jagdeo also served in an executive capacity as Minister of Finance as well as a Member of Parliament and in 1999 he was appointed president, when the then president, Mrs Janet Jagan demitted office.

Impression

Dr. Luncheon said that during his close relations with the president, he has seen no evidence that he is a racist. He said that the article in question left him with the impression that the aim was to confuse the readers on the position that the president held with regards to Afro- Guyanese and that members of the cabinet and government officials allegedly practiced racism against Afro-Guyanese. After the article was tendered, Dr. Luncheon said that the author clearly intended to convey the impression that Jagdeo and the government are racists. He later said that in his opinion, the ‘King Kong’ mentioned in the article was a reference to the president and that in his opinion the term had a negative connotation. “In my opinion, not only is the writer seeking to establish that President Jagdeo is an ideological racist but additionally extended the term/practise to members of the cabinet,” he said.

Dr. Luncheon was later asked to list the number of non-Indians who hold Cabinet posts. He called about nine names. Hughes, during cross-examination, quizzed him on at least 37 State agencies which are headed by persons of East Indian descent. These departments included the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA), GuySuCo, GINA, the National Communications Network (NCN), CANU and the Georgetown Hospital. Dr. Luncheon was also asked to list the ambassadors and he agreed that almost all were of Indian descent.

He later said that more than 50% of these persons have been appointed to State agency posts since Jagdeo took office. All of the appointments have to first be taken to Cabinet, he said, before pointing out that Jagdeo is the head of Cabinet. Hughes then asked who signs the appointment letters. That question was met with an objection by Nandlall. Nandlall objected on the grounds that that line of questioning sought to establish a defence of justification and that on the pleadings filed, justification is not pleaded in accordance with the relevant rules and laws governing pleadings and how justification should be pleaded. He submitted therefore that that line of questioning ought not to be permitted. He later submitted a number of authorities in support of his position.

The case was adjourned and later the defence lawyers responded, saying that they have pleaded justification in the proper way. Also present in the packed courtroom were ministers Robert Persaud and Irfaan Ali, who are to testify on Jagdeo’s behalf. Asked by the media about the presence of Dr. Luncheon rather than Jagdeo, Nandlall said that Dr. Luncheon is one of his witnesses and “that is how I decided to conduct my case. I am in charge of the case.” He said that he is unable to say when the president will be in the witness box, pointing out that Jagdeo had international commitments, among others. The case continues next Wednesday.

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Luncheon faces grilling on appointments, contracts in Jagdeo libel case
By ZOISA FRASER | LOCAL | THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 2011

Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr. Roger Luncheon yesterday continued to face questions over government appointments and contract awards as testimony in President Bharrat Jagdeo’s $10M libel suit against Kaieteur News and columnist Freddie Kissoon continued. Luncheon faced continuing cross-examination by defence attorney Nigel Hughes, after Justice Brassington Reynolds overruled objections made by Jagdeo’s lawyer, Anil Nandlall to the line of questioning.

Legal arguments started last Friday when Nandlall objected to Hughes questioning Luncheon on State Agency appointments. Nandlall had objected on the grounds that the line of questioning sought to establish a defence of justification, although in the pleadings filed justification is not pleaded. As a result, he submitted that that line of questioning ought not to be permitted.


Dr. Roger Luncheon

In giving his ruling, Justice Reynolds noted that the defence has a right to challenge, while it is a matter for the court “to police” what can be asked. He stated that he would permit Hughes’ line of questioning as the questions were related to matters about which the witness had already testified. Nandlall accepted the ruling. He also apologised for Luncheon’s tardiness at the hearing, which resulted in a 15-minute adjournment.

During the continuation of the cross-examination, Luncheon yesterday admitted that the heads of all three arms of the state were of Indian-descent. He also accepted that several persons, who headed and were members of several principal state agencies, including the Privatization Board and the University of Guyana (UG) Council, were of Indian-descent. He, however, could not recall quite a few of the names, while saying that his ability to recall was being tested. He added that had he been in possession of documents, it would have aided him in his recollection, and especially to ascertain if members of African-descent were appointed by government to the UG council. He noted, however, that the current Chancellor, the previous Vice-chancellor as well as the current one are all Afro-Guyanese.


Nigel Hughes

Luncheon was asked if he agreed that the single largest contract awarded by the government was the NA/Molson Creek Road Rehabilitation Project. This was met with an objection by Nandlall. Hughes submitted that President Jagdeo, in his pleadings, claimed that Kissoon called him an ideological racist. Kissoon, he said, is saying that he has evidence of this and all the defence was doing is demonstrating evidence that is consistent with this. The defence counsel added that in his evidence in chief, Luncheon specifically said that Jagdeo had shown no evidence of practising bias or racism. “I believe that we are entitled to challenge this,” Hughes stressed. Justice Reynolds, however, said that he was still going to constrain Hughes’ line of questioning, which he considered inappropriate. Nandlall later stated that unless the defence can establish that Jagdeo awards contracts, “then that line of questioning must not be permitted.”

BK International

Luncheon said he could not recall if the single largest loan from the IDB was to the NA/Molson Creek project, explaining that he could not recall the size of the loans between the government and that international agency. He could not recall if that project was awarded to BK International or if it was for US$60 million. Luncheon also told the court that he could not affirm if 80% of sea defence works, which are funded by the IDB, are awarded by the government to BK International. He did say that Courtney Benn is a contracting company that was in receipt of in excess of US$5 million from the IDB for a single project.

Reading from a document, Hughes asked Luncheon if he was in a position to deny that BK International was in complete control of sea defence and boulder works. Nandlall objected and after being shown the document, which came from the company’s website, said that “this is a self-serving document.” Justice Reynolds then asked Hughes to rephrase his question, since the way it was being put could not be allowed. In responding to the rephrased question, Luncheon said that he could not say if that assertion was accurate.

Later, there were some objections as to the relevance of the witness being asked if he was aware of any companies owned by persons of African descent that have significant control of sea defence and boulder works. “I ask that we slow down so that the court can determine if the question is ‘put-able’ to the witness,” Justice Reynolds said at this point.

Luncheon was also questioned about contract awards and he noted that this is done by the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board. Cabinet’s “no objection” is needed for the award, he noted. He said that contracts are executed between the successful bidder and the accounting officer of the procurement entity, when he was asked who the signatories to contracts were. Luncheon stated that all contracts for over $15 million have to pass through Cabinet, which is chaired by Jagdeo, before reaching the Board.

Kissoon, Kaieteur News Editor Adam Harris and the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd, the publishers of Kaieteur News are named as defendants in the action, which was prompted by statements contained in the June 28, 2010 article, “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference.” Only Kissoon was present in court yesterday. The matter continues on Monday.

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Luncheon grilled on govt. contracts, postings, policies and land awards - Freddie vs Jagdeo libel case…
AUGUST 25, 2011 | BY KNEWS | FILED UNDER NEWS

Lawyers for President Bharrat Jagdeo yesterday failed in their bid to prevent Freddie Kissoon’s defence team from questioning Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon, on the award of contracts, as the libel case brought by the Head of State against the Kaieteur News columnist, the newspaper and its editor-in-chief, continued in the High Court yesterday. Dr Luncheon testified that it is the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board that awards contracts – therefore not the President.


Bharrat Jagdeo

However, upon further questioning, Luncheon admitted that as per procedure contracts are awarded by the Tender Administration Board only after a “Non Objection” is issued by Cabinet – the Cabinet being the Council of Government Ministers chaired by the President. The Head of the Presidential Secretariat further agreed that if the Cabinet, again chaired by the President, makes an objection to a contract, then it cannot be awarded by the Tender Administration Board. Questions about the award of government contracts, investments in sugar and bauxite, the award of agricultural leases, diplomatic postings, and the composition of boards of major government entities were some of the matters that came under the microscope when the libel case continued. Luncheon, the chief witness for the President’s legal team, spent the entire day in court being cross-examined by Nigel Hughes, one of the members of Kissoon’s defence team.

President Jagdeo is suing Kissoon, the publishers of Kaieteur News, and its Editor –in chief, for $10 million, claiming that the column entitled “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference” pointed to Jagdeo as King Kong. The President has claimed that the article suggests that he is a racist and that “by extension, the State and Government of Guyana, practice racism as an ideology, dogma, philosophy and policy.” Nigel Hughes, attorney for Freddie Kissoon, questioned Dr Luncheon on the award of major government contracts. Hughes sought to suggest that one of the single largest government contracts using funding from the Inter-American Development


Freddie Kissoon

Bank (IDB), namely the New Amsterdam to Moleson Creek Road was awarded to BK International and H. Nauth and Sons. The contract was for the rehabilitation of the two-lane – 85 km New Amsterdam to Crabwood Creek Road (NACCR) and the improvement of the 5-km gravel road from Crabwood Creek to Moleson Creek, located on the Corentyne River, the border between Guyana and Suriname. According to the IDB, the cost for the project was US$35 million. Dr Luncheon said he had no immediate recall of the sizes, or the amount, of the agreement with the IDB. Further, Dr Luncheon was asked to say if he would deny that in excess of 80% of sea defence contracts are awarded to BK International. Dr Luncheon said he would be unable to answer. Further, he was asked if he could deny an assertion by BK International that it has significant control of boulder works in Guyana. Luncheon said he was not certain if BK’s assertion is accurate.

On the diplomatic front, Dr Luncheon was questioned about the fact that Elizabeth Harper is the only Guyanese of African Descent who holds the position of Ambassador. Harper is based in Guyana and serves as the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ambassador to CARICOM. Dr Luncheon confirmed that Harper is the only Ambassador who performs dual functions. Dr Luncheon was further asked if there is currently no other African Guyanese who qualifies to get an overseas posting as Ambassador, and he said there was none.


Elizabeth Harper, the country’s only Afro-Guyanese Ambassador

On the award of agricultural lands, the defence questioned Dr Luncheon about the award of leases for agricultural lands in the intermediate savannahs during the tenure of President Jagdeo. The defence team gave a number of examples, but none awarded to an Afro Guyanese. Among those listed by Attorney Hughes were: Subir Singh – 3, 000 acres; Jim Mohabir – 3, 000 acres; Rafeek Choudhary 7, 047 acres; Khalil Mohamed – 5, 000 acres; Gerald Mekdeci – 7,600 acres; Georgia Caribbean International – 3, 520 acres; and Bashir – 2, 064 acres.


Nigel Hughes

Dr Luncheon was also questioned on the award of lots in industrial estates. He could not name one Afro-Guyanese company that has a lot at the Coldingen Estate, East Coast Demerara, and he could not confirm the defence’s claim that only 10% of lots awarded in the Eccles Industrial Site went to Afro-Guyanese. Regarding investments by the government, Dr Luncheon said between US$180-US$200 million was invested in sugar, namely the Skeldon Sugar Factory, and he admitted the industry employs mostly East Indians, and is managed mostly by East Indians. Regarding bauxite, which Dr Luncheon admitted mostly occupies African Guyanese, he said he could not comment on comparable investments to that sector, because both the mines, in Linden and in the Berbice River, were privatised.

Dr Luncheon was questioned about the government’s policy on privatisation and divestment, and he said that profit and loss were not the only factors taken into consideration. This was after he was asked to say the last time sugar made a profit. He said he believed it was sometime in the 2000s. He said he could not comment on the bauxite mines before they were privatised. Asked about the other factors that are taken into account when decisions about privatisation and divestments are made, Dr Luncheon said these include impact on the budget and the strategic nature of the entity.

Questioned earlier in the day about the composition of National Industrial and Commercial Investments Limited (NICIL), the body responsible for divestment of state assets, Dr Lunchoen could not say for sure who the members of the Board were. Attorney Hughes listed Grantly Culbard, as the only Afro-Guyanese on the board. Pressed further, Dr Luncheon was asked to indicate what state companies that employ mainly Afro-Guyanese had attracted more than US$100 million in any one year. Dr Luncheon said that while he may be challenged on the composition of the workforce, he identified the water and power sectors as benefitting from such investment.


Dr Roger Luncheon, right, and Attorney Anil Nandlall, before the start of yesterday’s proceedings.

Asked about the composition of the Board of the power company, GPL, Dr Luncheon said that he could not recall the names of all the directors on the board, but of those he could recall, he said one is of African descent. Regarding the composition of the Board of the Guyana Sugar Corporation, Dr Luncheon said that while he was uncertain about the size of the new Interim Board, he knew of one director who is of African descent.

The day’s session ended with the defence team admitting into evidence the academic paper that was written by Freddie Kissoon, upon which he based the article for which he is being sued. The academic paper is entitled “Ethnic Power and Ideological Racism: A comparative examination of Guyanese presidencies.” It was presented in June 2010 at the Annual Conference of the Guyana Historical and Research Society. Dr Luncheon said that he was aware of the facts contained in the paper, and when he was being showed a copy, the President’s attorney, Anil Nandlall, objected, saying that the witness could not be questioned on a 65-page document which neither of them had read.

Hughes remarked that the document should not have been treated as a “surprise” saying it was the basis upon which the article was written, and then it should not be the burden of the defence team to now supply that. The document was however passed to the President’s legal team. The case continues on September 29.

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Jagdeo’s DPP snubs, speeches on ‘past’ face scrutiny in libel suit
By ZOISA FRASER | LOCAL | TUESDAY, AUGUST 30, 2011

Head of the Presidential Secretariat Dr Roger Luncheon yesterday faced scrutiny over President Bharrat Jagdeo’s apparent snub of two Afro-Guyanese for appointment as Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) and his unwillingness to confirm another Afro-Guyanese as a Judge. Luncheon, who continued to testify under cross-examination in the $10M libel case filed by Jagdeo against Kaieteur News and columnist Freddie Kissoon, admitted to defence lawyer Nigel Hughes that the appointments of two Indo-Guyanese DPPs were made, although there were Afro-Guyanese who were at the DPP’s chambers for years.


Dr Roger Luncheon

Luncheon said that the appointment of former DPP Denis Hanomansingh was made by President Jagdeo while the current DPP Shalimar Ali-Hack was appointed in accordance with constitutional provisions. Asked if the appointment of Hanomansingh was made even though there was an Afro Guyanese Deputy DPP—Yonette Cummings-Edwards—with some 15 years experience at the time, Luncheon said he could not recall. He added that the confidence or lack thereof by the President in Cummings-Edwards “is not a fact known to me.”

He did, however, recall Hanomansingh resigning after an incident and acknowledged that the substantive deputy at the time, Roxane George, was not appointed to the post. He said that Ali-Hack was recommended by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) and the president confirmed the appointment after George vacated the post of deputy DPP. Luncheon also acknowledged that since Jagdeo took office, the only recommendation made by the JSC for the appointment of a judge that required legal proceedings to compel him to confirm the judge was in the case of an Afro-Guyanese. The judge in question is Justice James Bovell-Drakes.

When asked the reason for this situation, Luncheon said that he had not seen the pleadings but was advised at a Cabinet meeting at which Jagdeo was present that this was the “first instance that I saw a nominee who was a member of the hierarchy of a political organisation to the judiciary.” He said that he took that to mean that that was the one, if not the sole, basis for reservation.

Deprived of access

Luncheon, who admitted, that the “majority” of students at the Critchlow Labour College are Afro-Guyanese, was asked about the pulling of its subvention. He explained that it was withheld, pending a request for information, which led to the subvention no longer being provided. He was also asked if Linden, a predominantly Afro-Guyanese community, was the only town that receives one authorised licensed channel of the places permitted to receive authorised signals. This was met with an objection by lawyer for Jagdeo, Anil Nandlall, who questioned its relevance. Hughes said that he was merely seeking to show that Jagdeo was indeed a racist and practised racism – which had been denied by Luncheon during earlier testimony.

“I believe that as a defence attorney, I am entitled to challenge every aspect of the statement that the witness has made,” he noted. He explained that he was seeking to show that because Linden is a “black town,” it is deliberately being deprived of having access to licensed television stations. Justice Brassington Reynolds later allowed the question, and Luncheon said that to the best of his knowledge, the township has one official licensed broadcaster and while he was uncertain of the channel, he knew it was the state television.

“That may be, so but I am not in a position to confirm it,” he added, when was asked if it was correct to say that the Jagdeo government had not allowed anyone else to broadcast there. He later said that he was only aware of NCN being a broadcaster in Linden. Dr Luncheon also said that to the best of his knowledge, Indo-Guyanese communities like Rose Hall, Port Mourant, Babu John, Albion, Crabwood Creek, Mahaica, Mahaicony and islands predominantly East Indian in the Essequibo River receive other licensed channels.

Past

He was also questioned about conflicting statements made to gatherings at Babu John, which is predominantly Indo-Guyanese and Buxton, which is predominantly Afro-Guyanese. Meanwhile, Hughes also asked Luncheon about two recent Jagdeo speeches on the subject of the past, which initially drew objections from Nandlall, which were overruled. Hughes read an excerpt of a March 13 address by the president at Babu John. He quoted the president as saying: “So they’re counting on poor memories and they’re counting on the lack of knowledge on the part of young people to bring these white elephants, behemoths, the fossils of the past back in the political arena and I hope that you will, as I ask you, make sure that people are educated about that past.”

The attorney also presented to Luncheon, the address by the president on August 18, at Buxton, where he said: “I don’t want to go back to analysing the past and what happened, that is part of our history.” Luncheon said he recalled the reports, but added that he was not in attendance and without the context of the messages it would be difficult for him to agree that they were different because he was not present. He said that at Babu John, Jagdeo was speaking in an official capacity and that the comments were centred on years of denial of free and fair elections and the support provided by elements in the military to this enterprise. In Buxton, he added, the president “as I understood it, was addressing the perception that the government saw Buxton as a home housing criminal elements and being treated in a discriminatory fashion as a consequence.”

The proceedings came to an abrupt end after about two hours, when Nandlall objected to a report by the UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues Gay McDougall, which was produced by Hughes. Luncheon, minutes before the objection, said that he was familiar with the contents of the report and had read it in its entirety. Justice Reynolds later ruled that he would admit the document for identification purposes, while the lawyer will put forward arguments over its admissibility as evidence. The case continues tomorrow afternoon with legal arguments, after which Luncheon is expected to return to the stand.

Columnist Kissoon, Kaieteur News Editor Adam Harris and the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd, the publishers of Kaieteur News, are named as defendants in the lawsuit, which was prompted by statements contained in the June 28, 2010 article, “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference.” Kissoon and Lall were present in court yesterday.

Source

Freddie vs Jagdeo libel case…Court hears Black candidates overlooked for DPP position
AUGUST 30, 2011 | BY KNEWS | FILED UNDER NEWS

The High Court yesterday heard how President Bharrat Jagdeo overlooked two Afro-Guyanese candidates for the post of Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in favour of Indo-Guyanese, as the libel case brought against Kaieteur News columnist Freddie Kissoon, the newspaper’s publisher and editor-in-chief continued yesterday. President Jagdeo is suing for $10 million, claiming that a column entitled “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference” pointed to Jagdeo as King Kong. The President has claimed that the article suggests that he is a racist and that “by extension, the State and Government of Guyana, practice racism as an ideology, dogma, philosophy and policy.”

Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon – the President’s chief witness – testified that during the Jagdeo Presidency, only two persons were appointed to the post of DPP, namely Dennis Hanomansingh and Shalimar Ali-Hack, both of Indian descent. Luncheon said the appointments were made according to constitutional provisions. He was questioned on the fact that Hanomansingh was brought from outside the DPP’s Chambers and appointed to the post over Yonette-Cummings Edwards, an Afro-Guyanese who had served within the DPP’s chambers for 15 years, and within that time acted as Deputy DPP for several years, but was not favoured by the President for the job in the end.

On September 23, 2003, Hanomansingh was among the almost dozen persons who were injured when gunmen opened fire at the popular Natoo’s bar in Kitty and killed four persons. Subsequent to the incident, Hanomansingh resigned as DPP, and Roxanne George, an Afro-Guyanese, performed the functions of DPP. She did not receive the appointment, and left in 2004 to become a High Court Judge. Following George’s resignation, Ali-Hack performed the functions of Acting DPP until she received the substantive appointment in April 2008. Luncheon concurred with Attorney Nigel Hughes on the appointments of Hanomansingh and Ali-Hack, but did not go into details as to why the two Afro-Guyanese candidates, Yonette-Cummings Edwards and Roxanne George, were not favoured.

On the issuance of Broadcast licences, Luncheon admitted that Linden, which he acknowledged is inhabited by mostly Afro-Guyanese, was the only place in Guyana where only one television station is licenced to broadcast, and that station happens to be the state-owned and controlled NCN. At this point, Luncheon’s attorney Anil Nandlall objected on the grounds of relevance, saying that the case is based on the Freddie Kissoon column in which the President claims he was libeled. Nandlall said that whether the people of Buxton, Crabwood Creek, or anyone else has one or more TV stations has nothing to do with the matter at hand, since neither the people at Paramakatoi nor Kurupung have access to TV, and it didn’t matter whether they were “Black, White, Mulatto or Brown.” He told the court that such questions have no “probable” value, but more prejudicial value, as the answers to such questions would be “spun” by the press and serve the interests of those who want to use the case for their own agendas.

Attorney Hughes then told the court that the case rests on the President’s challenge that he is not an “ideological racist” and it was Dr Luncheon who testified that the President does not practice racism. Hughes said he was, therefore, entitled to challenge Luncheon on every statement he had made, and therefore his questioning on the granting of licences was to show how by restricting the people of Linden to only the State television, it was being prejudiced against Afro-Guyanese. The Judge, Brassington Reynolds, overruled Nandlall’s objection and allowed Hughes to proceed with his line of questioning.

Luncheon was asked if it would be correct to say that the government, headed by the President, has not licenced any other challenge or company to broadcast in Linden. To this, Luncheon said that may be so, but he was not in a position to confirm. Luncheon’s attention was then drawn to a December 3, 2008 Parliamentary motion by the Alliance For Change’s Sheila Holder, which called for the town of Linden to receive additional channels. When asked, Luncheon could not say if the government voted against the motion, but he did recall the motion being taken to the National Assembly. According to press reports, the government voted 31-24 against the opposition to have the motion defeated. Presidential Advisor Gail Teixeira, at the time said what stymied the process was the fact that a communiqué signed between President Jagdeo and Opposition Leader Robert Corbin, ordered a freeze on the issuance of licences until a Broadcast legislation could be implemented.

Nine days after the motion was defeated in Parliament, Chief Justice (ag) Ian Chang ordered that the National Frequency Management Unit (NFMU) speedily grant broadcast licences to those who want to broadcast in Linden and Region Ten. Chang ruled that the rights of citizens under Article 146 of the Constitution cannot be abridged based on an agreement made between Jagdeo and Corbin. Lindeners Norman Chapman and Mortimer Yearwood had moved to the High Court, prior to the 2006 general elections, claiming that their fundamental rights were being breached by their not being able to have radio or TV broadcasts other than from state-owned radio and TV. Luncheon’s attention was brought to the ruling, but the Court did not allow questioning on it.

The Head of the Presidential Secretariat was then questioned on statements made by the President at Babu John, Corentyne, at a March 13th 2011 activity to commemorate the life of late President Dr Cheddi Jagan, and at Buxton, East Coast Demerara on August 18th 2010, during a ceremony for the reconstruction of Tipperary Hall. Hughes sought to show that at Babu John, of predominantly Indo-Guyanese, the President called on young people not to forget the past, while at Buxton, of mostly Afro-Guyanese, the President called on young people to forget the past.

Hughes quoted what Jagdeo stated at Babu John, “they’re counting on poor memories and they’re counting on the lack of knowledge on the part of young people to bring these white elephants, behemoths, the fossils of the past back in the political arena, and I hope that you will as I ask you, make sure that people are educated about that past…” Luncheon, during testimony, said that while he was not present at Babu John, he recalled reports of the President’s statement. When he was allowed to explain, Luncheon said that the context in which the President was speaking dealt with the years of denial of free and fair elections and the support provided by elements in the military.

According to press reports, the President’s statement was made during his reference to the Presidential Candidate of the main opposition, David Granger. The President accused Granger of having blood on his hands owing to an incident surrounding the 1973 elections when three of the PPP’s supporters were killed in Berbice, when the government tasked the Army with transporting ballot boxes. Hughes quoted the President as telling the people at Buxton that he did not want them to go back and analyse the past, since that was part of history. Luncheon said that the President there was addressing the perception that Buxton was seen as a haven for criminals and was being treated in a discriminatory manner as a consequence.

Luncheon was then questioned why the government had stopped the provision of subvention to Critchlow Labour College, which he agreed is attend by mostly Afro-Guyanese. He was then asked if he was aware that it was during the Jagdeo presidency that the subvention to the institution was terminated. Luncheon agreed, and explained the reason for this was the non-submission of information the government had requested of the college.

The day’s hearing ended with a request by Nandlall to verify the authenticity of a document from which Luncheon was going to be questioned on further. The document Hughes tendered was the 2009 report of independent expert Gay McDougall, after she had visited Guyana for the United Nations Human Rights Commission. Dr Luncheon said he was familiar with the Commission and that he had read the report and also recalled that the government had repudiated the entire report.

Hughes presented the document to Nandlall, and he (Nandlall) then agreed to hand the document to Luncheon, who told the court that was the report he had read and which the government repudiated in its entirety. When Hughes was about to proceed with his questioning, Nandlall told the court he could not vouch for the authenticity of the document and needed time to verify this. Hughes requested of the Judge to put on record that Nandlall was accusing him of producing a forged document to the court, but the Judge did not concede that that was the accusation being made as Nandlall had just prior referred to Hughes as someone of “integrity.”

The court was adjourned to today when Dr Luncheon will continue to be questioned after the Judge meets with Attorneys on both sides to decide on the integrity of the document and if it would be admitted into evidence. McDougall, visited Guyana between July 28-August 1, 2008. During her visit, she travelled to Georgetown and surrounding communities. She held consultations with the President, ministers and other senior government representatives, NGOs, civil society groups, political parties, religious leaders, academics and others working in the field of minority issues and anti-discrimination.

According to the report published online, the independent expert visited communities, including Buxton, and talked to community members about their lives and issues. According to the report, Afro-Guyanese with whom McDougall met, described feeling excluded from having a full voice and stake in the national polity and equal enjoyment of rights in many fields of life including employment and economic participation, and they reported stigmatization of young Afro-Guyanese males and entire African communities.

Source

Freddie Kissoon -------- vs -------- Bharrat Jagdeo

... vs ...

Guys, when this government falls and if it falls to the pnc you can bet $5 that the land given out will be taken back from those people. I must say this and I am a PPP man. Under the PNC governments they never sold that amount of state land to rich people. For example; Eddy Grant wanted to buy thousands of acres of land instead they (PNC government) leased him the state land which he had to eventually return. Everyone on the board here know I don't like them Jagans because of their Jagan Raj's abusive leadership style while leading the PPP which destroyed many PPP comrades. Nevertheless, I cannot for the life of me see them Jagans doing some of these things that is happening today.

In the Bharrat Jagdeo versus Freddie Kissoon, Adam Harris and National Media Publishing Inc. libel case

Written by
Wednesday, 31 August 2011 01:11
Source - Guyana Chronicle

Court agrees that Kaieteur News must report fairly and accurately on the case.

THE COURT has exceptional powers to ensure that the Kaieteur News daily report accurately on the Bharrat Jagdeo versus Freddie Kissoon, Adam Harris and National Media Publishing Inc. libel case. Attorney for President Jagdeo, Anil Nandlall, says he had cause to bring this to the attention of the judge at yesterday’s hearing, given the daily’s Tuesday headlines , “Court hears black candidates overlooked for DPP position”, and “Lindeners limited to government controlled TV channel”.

Mr. Nandlall noted that given Kaieteur News is party to the proceedings, the daily has an interest to serve, and continues to misrepresent and carry extraneous issues.

Nandlall further stated that issues favourable to the plaintiff and those against the Kaieteur News paper are not being reported on.

According to Nandlall, this behaviour by Kaieteur News is dangerous, since the case deals with the sensitive issue of race in a multi-racial society.

The attorney for the president says the Court has agreed with his sentiments, and hopes that good sense will prevail on the part of the newspaper.

Nandlall also stated that during his examination of Dr. Roger Luncheon, Cabinet Secretary and Head of the Presidential Secretariat, he hopes to bring balance to the case and clear up any misrepresentations.

Use file photo of Anil Nandlall

quote:

Originally posted by Wally:
Guys, when this government falls and if it falls to the pnc you can bet $5 that the land given out will be taken back from those people. I must say this and I am a PPP man. Under the PNC governments they never sold that amount of state land to rich people. For example; Eddy Grant wanted to buy thousands of acres of land instead they (PNC government) leased him the state land which he had to eventually return. Everyone on the board here know I don't like them Jagans because of their Jagan Raj's abusive leadership style while leading the PPP which destroyed many PPP comrades. Nevertheless, I cannot for the life of me see them Jagans doing some of these things that is happening today.

Ramotar secured a nice piece of prime real estate for his daughter; Jagan did not do that for his daughter? BTW, why is she not living in Guyana under the current PPP regime?

Jagdeo even chose an indian attorney to represent him. How stupid. You want to show that you are not racist but chose an indian attorney. Like Forest Gump would say, "Stupid is as stupid does"

This trial is going to be more problematic for his Excellency and the PPP than many may have anticipated.

There is no net value or benefit that will come out of this for his excellency or the PPP.

I suspect that when all the facts are revealed the outcome will not be in Kisson's favor.

So far the argument that the defense is making is that race was a factor in the appointment of Ambassadors and heads of Boards and that friends of the PPP are given contracts.

The simple response is there was no other qualified candidate at the time the decision was made based on information that was available.

quote:

Originally posted by Demerara_Guy:

Court agrees that Kaieteur News must report fairly and accurately on the case.

What are the chances of that happening?

quote:

Originally posted by Henry:

quote:

Originally posted by Demerara_Guy:

Court agrees that Kaieteur News must report fairly and accurately on the case.

What are the chances of that happening?

That will happen when Chronicle starts reporting fairly.

We have to stop being hypocrites.

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

The simple response is there was no other qualified candidate at the time the decision was made based on information that was available.

You joking, right?

quote:

Originally posted by Gupta:

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

The simple response is there was no other qualified candidate at the time the decision was made based on information that was available.

You joking, right?

DND the evidence is quite to the contrary in the DPP for example there was Ms. George and another black woman Ms. Edwards there that both had much much more lengthy qualifications and stellar resumes.

Both were overlooked for their jobs.

This woman who was at ministry of education was kept as acting chief education officer till retirement so that we would not have to pay her the benefits of the job. These things are wrong man and no matter what you say this is true.

We are sacrificing our own principles of what we fought for and instead we should treat people the way we would want to be treated.

This not right. Not right.

well at least his excellency bharrat has the finess to take freddie to court...unlike edward boyer who entertained the medieval way

quote:

Originally posted by asj:
well at least his excellency bharrat has the finess to take freddie to court...unlike edward boyer who entertained the medieval way

Isn't Edward a very very very good friend of His Excellency?

quote:

Originally posted by Gupta:

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

The simple response is there was no other qualified candidate at the time the decision was made based on information that was available.

You joking, right?

Clearly you miss the point.

quote:

Originally posted by Horse Man:

quote:

Originally posted by Gupta:

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

The simple response is there was no other qualified candidate at the time the decision was made based on information that was available.

You joking, right?

DND the evidence is quite to the contrary in the DPP for example there was Ms. George and another black woman Ms. Edwards there that both had much much more lengthy qualifications and stellar resumes.

Both were overlooked for their jobs.

This woman who was at ministry of education was kept as acting chief education officer till retirement so that we would not have to pay her the benefits of the job. These things are wrong man and no matter what you say this is true.

We are sacrificing our own principles of what we fought for and instead we should treat people the way we would want to be treated.

This not right. Not right.

Really???? You are privy to their resumes and based on your judgment they were qualified. Well based on my judgment they were not. Do you understand what I am saying? It comes down to judgment. They can say Jagdeo made poor judgment but it is difficult to prove racism.

what happen to Freddie beard?

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

I suspect that when all the facts are revealed the outcome will not be in Kisson's favor.

Most likely, the outcome of the trial.

quote:

Originally posted by Horse Man:

quote:

Originally posted by Henry:

quote:

Originally posted by Demerara_Guy:

Court agrees that Kaieteur News must report fairly and accurately on the case.

What are the chances of that happening?

That will happen when Chronicle starts reporting fairly.

The Court's specific words are to Kaieteur News on accurate reporting.

The official transcript of this trial will read like a ready-made production catalogue of all the comparisons and points one can make to claim racial bias by president and government. One big fat indictable bundle for future historical reference. And history will not be kind to the plaintiff when this is reviewed over the next hundreds years. It's immaterial what the judicial outcome will determine. In historical-academic terms, Jagdeo has been unmasked and now has already lost.

This trial is really stupid. The PNC had every board member as a Negro. No indian was anywhere to be seen or heard of.

Ramjattan should have stayed away from this case.

Investments were denied to indians under the PNC, whilst the PNC supporters borrowed and had easy access to funds from the Guyana Agricultural Bank. They never invested a penny-they juss sport it all out.

In 1992 the bank was closed. Whey those negroes were going to get money to invest in the new Guyana of 1992. No free money from any bank was available anymore.

As for Government owned companies, those who headed them lived high on the hog with the finances staying at fancy hotels and eatin big. And they were all Negroes.

Guyana is really a shyte hole-and not even a single politician got the baltz to sey it the way it is.

I SAY IT AGAIN, RAMJATTAN MADE A VERY BIG MISTAKE BEING IN THIS TRIAL. It will haunt him during the campaign. he might even have to resign.

This is an interesting case, if Freddie's lawyers can prove that the PPP govt promotes racist policies then it can be compared to some of the civil rights cases fought by Thurgood Marshall.

I await the outcome. hahahahahhah

UN report on Afro-Guyanese inaccurate - Luncheon tells libel hearing
By ZOISA FRASER | LOCAL | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 31, 2011 Updated: 10:56 am

Dr. Roger Luncheon yesterday testified that a visiting UN expert on minorities produced an “inaccurate” report on Guyana, focusing more on Afro-Guyanese rather than the Amerindians, who he said have a bigger claim as a minority. Just before Head of the Presidential Secretariat Luncheon continued giving evidence under cross-examination, in the $10 million libel case brought by President Bharrat Jagdeo against Kaieteur News and its columnist Freddie Kissoon, Justice Brassington Reynolds admitted the Gay McDougall report into evidence for identification purposes. Jagdeo’s attorney Anil Nandlall on Monday had objected to the report, which was presented by defence attorney Nigel Hughes. It was following legal arguments by the two sides yesterday that the judge made his ruling.


Dr. Roger Luncheon

McDougall, United Nations Independent Expert on Minorities, among her findings noted that a “serious concern” was the stigmatisation of young Afro-Guyanese males and entire communities, which reported feelings of being excluded, discriminated against and victimised. She also said that “Ethnically-based divisions and politics have created two separate and conflicting narratives and perceptions of reality in Guyana.” On the part of Afro-Guyanese, McDougall said, there is a widely held belief that they are discriminated against by an Indian-dominated and supported government that puts Indian interests to the fore, particularly in resource allocation, government contracts and employment. At the same time, she said Indo-Guyanese believe that an Afro-centric political opposition, if in power, would settle political scores and work solely in the interests of Afro-Guyanese. She had visited Guyana between July 28 and August 1, 2008, to promote, among other things the implementation of the Declaration on Rights of Persons belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities.

Luncheon testified that from his recollection, McDougall accepted government’s invitation to do a report on the state of minorities in Guyana and “she produced a report that predominantly dealt with Afro-Guyanese and to a significantly lesser extent with our Amerindian brothers and sisters.” He said that the government felt that the Amerindians had a much greater cause to be a subject of her investigations. He said that “we also objected to the stakeholders with whom she consulted during her time in Guyana to conduct the report.” According to Luncheon, government also objected to McDougall’s short stay in Guyana and the basis for how profoundly she pronounced on her findings. He said that the expert also failed to give an audience to a suitable cross-section of persons. “I would concede that we were troubled by her report that addressed a much greater level of detail on Afro Guyanese as oppose to the Amerindian brothers and sisters who we felt had a more legitimate claim to be dealt with,” he said. He added that the government thought that the report itself on the Afro-Guyanese minority was also a subject of concern. Asked if he thought the report about Afro-Guyanese was inaccurate, he responded “it was”.

He later noted that from the inception, McDougall was provided with extensive information on all minorities in Guyana. She was also given an opportunity to meet senior government and state functionaries who were willing to provide information on the issue but instead met with Non-Governmental Organisation contacts, “formal and informal.” He testified that McDougall opted also to go to the minorities herself. He later said that government was left disappointed when it learnt that the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) had made a request to meet with the expert but it was not honoured. He made it clear that the request was not made on behalf of the government. Luncheon did, however, acknowledge that the UN offered McDougall to the government as an expert and she was not rejected. He said too that prior to the study being conducted, her credentials, among other things, were checked out.


Gay McDougall

Honorary Consul appointments

Luncheon was also questioned about the administration’s failure to act on some requests for honorary consuls. He recalled Spain making a request for Frederick Hamley Case, who is Afro-Guyanese, to be appointed honorary consul. However, he said he was uncertain of the period over which government did not honour the request, after Hughes suggested that over three years government failed or refused to appoint Case. Asked if he was aware of a complaint being made to the ERC against the government over its refusal to appoint Case on the grounds of his race, Luncheon said “that may be so but I have no recollection of that complaint being lodged with the ERC. Nandlall objected to Hughes asking Dr. Luncheon if he was aware that ERC wrote government asking for an explanation. According to Nandlall, the witness had already answered the question.

Luncheon, under further questioning, said he was unaware of Richard Fields having previously held the posts of honorary consul for Finland and Italy or that the governments of the two countries submitted a request for the appointment of an honorary consul. He also later said that he could not recall Fields being accredited in under four weeks. He said that he also could not confirm or deny that the representative for the appointment for honorary consul to Italy was Afro-Guyanese and his application is still pending after four months. Luncheon later acknowledged that several persons who held 22 senior positions at the Georgetown Hospital, including the Chief Executive Officer, were Indo-Guyanese.

Meanwhile, Nandlall, at the beginning of yesterday’s proceedings, charged that Kaieteur News was irresponsible, selective and opinionated in its coverage of the case. He made reference to an article published in the newspaper in last Thursday’s edition as well as Tuesday’s edition. In the latter, he said, the headline carried on the front page represented a finding. “This is clearly not the evidence,” he said, while adding that one can see the articles being carried in the Kaieteur News and the Stabroek News being very different. The latter, he said, carries more balanced reports. “They are taking out portions of evidence which suit their interest in the case itself and also they are advancing a particular agenda,” he added of Kaieteur News.

According to Nandlall, the newspaper went as far as to name a judge in its Tuesday report, although he was not named in court. He called on the court to reprimand the Kaieteur News and have it retract the headline. Hughes, in response, said that he was confused as to what Nandlall wanted the court to do. He said that the court would decide on the evidence that is led and there is no one to be influenced “in your case other than you.” He noted that there was nothing in the headline that could be interpreted to influence the court. Further, he noted that Stabroek News also mentioned the name of the judge. Justice Reynolds said that he would not pronounce on the quality of the reportage, but stressed that the coverage of the matter should be fair and balanced. He added, “I don’t know that I have a duty to demand a retraction.”

Columnist Kissoon, Kaieteur News Editor Adam Harris and the National Media and Publishing Company Ltd, the publishers of Kaieteur News, are named as defendants in the lawsuit, which was prompted by statements contained in the June 28, 2010 article, “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference.” The case continues September 30 when Luncheon’s cross-examination should be concluded.

Source

quote:

Originally posted by seignet:
This trial is really stupid. The PNC had every board member as a Negro. No indian was anywhere to be seen or heard of.

Ramjattan should have stayed away from this case.

Investments were denied to indians under the PNC, whilst the PNC supporters borrowed and had easy access to funds from the Guyana Agricultural Bank. They never invested a penny-they juss sport it all out.

In 1992 the bank was closed. Whey those negroes were going to get money to invest in the new Guyana of 1992. No free money from any bank was available anymore.

As for Government owned companies, those who headed them lived high on the hog with the finances staying at fancy hotels and eatin big. And they were all Negroes.

Guyana is really a shyte hole-and not even a single politician got the baltz to sey it the way it is.

I SAY IT AGAIN, RAMJATTAN MADE A VERY BIG MISTAKE BEING IN THIS TRIAL. It will haunt him during the campaign. he might even have to resign.

Uncle seignet two wrongs do not make a right. It is this principled stand that is embodied in Ramjattan. Yes, it may cost us some votes, especially among the older hardliners, however, it is likely to gain us much more from among the young people for whom wrong is wrong.

Freddie vs Jagdeo libel case… Judge denies application for reprimand of KNews
AUGUST 31, 2011 | BY KNEWS | FILED UNDER NEWS

Justice Brassington Reynolds yesterday denied an application by counsel for President Bharrat Jagdeo, Anil Nandlall, to have the Kaieteur News retract one of its headlines in relation to the libel suit brought against it and one of its columnists, Frederick Kissoon. Nandlall was seeking to have the judge reprimand the newspaper for its headline ‘Court hears Black candidates overlooked for DPP position” and for him to direct the Kaieteur News to be fair and responsible in its reporting. Nandlall argued that the headline shows that the newspaper is advancing an agenda, and he will object to any move to use the case as a platform for matters extraneous to the subject.


Judge Brassington Reynolds

President Jagdeo is suing for $10 million, claiming that a column entitled “King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the conference” pointed to Jagdeo as King Kong. The President has claimed that the article suggests that he is a racist and that “by extension, the State and Government of Guyana, practice racism as an ideology, dogma, philosophy and policy.” The President’s attorney pointed out to the court, two instances where the newspaper was, according to him, not being balanced. He cited the August 25 report which he said did not truly reflect the evidence given by chief witness Dr Roger Luncheon, with regards to the granting of contracts. He then pointed to yesterday’s article which he stated was an attempt by the newspaper to pronounce on the findings of the case.

According to Nandlall, yesterday’s headline was simply a conclusion by the Kaieteur News. “Kaieteur News, which is a party with interests to serve in this matter, is taking out positions of evidence which suits their purpose,” Nandlall told the court. He stated that the case involves persons of a particular calibre and it deals with sensitive issues. “The (KN) reports are designed to incite certain passions,” Nandlall said.

In response, Nigel Hughes, counsel for one of the respondents, Frederick Kissoon, said that he was not too sure if Nandlall wanted the judge to play the role of editor or if he was advocating that the newspaper be cited for contempt. According to Hughes, Nandlall is inviting the judge to go into areas that the Court cannot. “Court has no power to tell the newspaper what it can carry,” Hughes argued. With regards to Nandlall’s reference to the pronouncement on the evidence by the Kaieteur News, Hughes said that the question of influence only impacts on a case that involves a jury.


Attorney Anil Nandlall

“This court will not be influenced by the Kaieteur News report, unless he (Nandlall) is saying that you (Justice Reynolds) are vulnerable. We do not hold any suspicion that the court will be influenced by a newspaper headline,” Hughes reasoned. He said that based on the evidence presented by Dr. Luncheon, the Kaieteur News had the right to conclude that persons were overlooked for the position of the Director of Public Prosecutions. He questioned whether Nandlall’s motive was to intimidate the Kaieteur News with regards to what it prints. “They are free to publish what they want but if they publish what is not said in court then it could be contempt.” The attorney accused Nandlall of calling on the court to exercise editorial control in a democratic society. “I am challenging my learned friend to prove that the court has that right,” Hughes stated.

After listening to both sides, Justice Reynolds announced that he would not pronounce on the quality of reporting in the matter. He stated that he has challenged himself not to read the reports on the case in the media, although he made it clear that it will in no way influence his decisions. “I don’t have the power to order a retraction (of the headline). I don’t want to say to a newspaper what angle to take and how much is to be reported. However, what is reported should be what transpired in court,” Justice Reynolds said. “Conclusions and inferences are beyond my jurisdiction, except when they become contemptuous,” he added. After that matter was cleared up, the parties then proceeded with the real issue at hand, the continuation of the cross examination of Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon.

Source

Freddie vs Jagdeo libel case… Govt.’s refusal to accredit Afro-Guyanese Consuls questioned
AUGUST 31, 2011 | BY KNEWS | FILED UNDER NEWS

Justice Brassington Reynolds yesterday admitted into evidence a United Nations report on the status of the minority population in Guyana, as the cross examination of Cabinet Secretary Dr. Roger Luncheon in the libel case brought by President Jagdeo against Kaieteur News columnist Frederick Kissoon, National Media & Publishing Company, publishers of Kaieteur News, and Editor-in-Chief, Adam Harris, continued.


Attorney Nigel Hughes

Monday’s court proceedings had ended with the two sides locked in arguments over the admissibility of a document – the 2009 report of independent expert Gay McDougall, after she had visited Guyana for the United Nations Human Rights Commission. Attorney for President Jagdeo, Anil Nandlall, had objected to the document being admitted on the grounds that it was simply “hearsay upon hearsay”. He argued that the document, which was rejected by the government, was not an original one, was not certified, and had no signature.

Yesterday Luncheon was asked by attorney Nigel Hughes, Counsel for columnist Frederick Kissoon, whether the basis on which the report was rejected by the government was based on the methodology deployed by the expert. Luncheon responded that he would not use the word methodology. He said his recollection is that Mc Dougall had accepted the Government’s invitation to do the report on the state of the minority in Guyana. Luncheon went on to say that the report predominantly dealt with Africans in Guyana and to a significantly lesser extent, Amerindians, who according to him were being seen and treated as the main subject of the minority.

Secondly, he said that Government had objected to the report on the basis of her outreach, which refers to the stakeholders McDougall had consulted with during her visit to Guyana. Thirdly, Luncheon said that the government had objected to the report because of McDougall’s short stay in Guyana and the profoundness with which she pronounced in her findings. Fourthly, Luncheon spoke of McDougall’s failure to give an audience to suitable cross-sections of the society, particularly those who sought an audience with her. Those places included the Constitutional Rights Commission and Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC). He said that he was disappointed that the ERC made the request and it was not honoured.


Dr. Roger Lucheon

“Those were some of the main objectives that were captioned by the formal government response to the report,” Luncheon said. Hughes asked Luncheon if the Government knew that McDougall was an expert on minority affairs when they accepted her to conduct her exercise. The witness said that it was the United Nations that offered her to be in Guyana and no objection was raised by the Office of the President. Luncheon was then asked if he knew that the expert was an African-American, and he responded by saying that they became more familiar with the expert after a review prior to the commencement of her study here.

Luncheon was then asked whether McDougall’s report had to deal with the scope of her investigation into Afro-Guyanese and Amerindians. The witness said that it was not scope, but it was the status of the minority. The question was put to the witness on whether the Government had objected because the expert spent more time with the Afro-Guyanese instead of the Amerindians. Luncheon conceded that he was “troubled” that there was a much greater level of detail on Afro-Guyanese than Amerindians, since he said that the government felt that the Amerindians had a more legitimate claim to be dealt with as a minority than Afro-Guyanese.

The witness was further grilled about if the government thought the report was inaccurate. The witness answered in the affirmative. Hughes argued that he merely wanted the document to be admitted not for its truthfulness, but as the document that the government rejected, so that when the time comes for the defence to present its case using the said document it would not be a surprise to the plaintiff’s lawyers. After listening to both sides, the judge admitted the McDougall Report as evidence. As the matter progressed, the witness was asked about the process of electing a Head of the Elections Commission, and if it was done by the Carter Formula. It was explained that the opposition parties would put up a slate of names, from which the Presiden,t after approving of them, would pick one to chair the Elections Commission.

The question was put to him, that on the two occasions President Jagdeo had to pick the Elections Commission Chairman, he picked someone of East Indian origin. Those two persons were Major General (ret) Joe Singh and Dr. Steve Surujbally, and Dr Luncheon answered in the affirmative. He was then asked if he was familiar with the list that was put up; Luncheon said he was not familiar on both occasions. Hughes then referred to the recommendation by Spain for Afro-Guyanese Hamley Case to be accredited as the Honorary Consul to that country. Dr Luncheon told the court that he recalled the request but could not say how long the government had taken to deal with the matter. Hughes then informed him that after the government procrastinated on the matter, Case filed a complaint to the Ethnic Relations Commission on the government’s refusal to appoint him on the basis of race. Hughes also presented documentation that that effect.

Luncheon replied that that being so, he had no recollection that a complaint was made to the government. Hughes then questioned Luncheon on whether he was aware that the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had written to the ERC on the matter and he said no. Luncheon was questioned about if he could deny a statement that representation was made for an Honorary Consul position for Finland and the person chosen was Indian. This was approved within four weeks, whereas the representation for an Honorary Consul for Italy was an Afro-Guyanese and that matter is still pending after four months. The witness said he has no recollection of the matter so he could not deny it.

Soon after this Nandlall made an objection, stating that no connection was being made between the plaintiff and what was being stated. He urged the court to take charge of the proceedings. He claimed that throughout the hour of cross examination, no reference was made of the plaintiff. However it was pointed out that the basis for the legal action was the fact that the plaintiff “and his government” were being accused of practicing racism.

Dr. Luncheon also denied that contracts were awarded by the Works Services Group, without the input of the Ministry of Works and Communication, which is headed by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds. Henceforth, the day’s proceedings came an end, after Luncheon was asked about the fact that all 22 of the top positions at the Georgetown Hospital are filled by East Indians. Luncheon said he knew of the persons in the positions, likewise a few have resigned and also there were a few whom he did not recall.

Source

UN Minorities report accepted as evidence in Jagdeo-Kissoon libel case
Written by Denis Scott Chabrol Tuesday, 30 August 2011 17:39


Dr. Luncheon leaving the High Court recently.

A High Court judge on Tuesday admitted into evidence a copy of a United Nations report on the status of minorities in Guyana that was rejected by the Guyana government. The report, painting a poor condition of African Guyanese, was tendered by the defence in a libel case brought by President Bharrat Jagdeo against Kaieteur News newspaper columnist, Freddie Kissoon, newspaper editor, Adam Harris and publisher, Glen Lall.

Jagdeo believes that he was libeled by Kissoon characterizing him as an ideological racist in a June 28, 2010 article titled ‘King Kong sent his goons to disrupt the Conference’. Kissoon was alluding to the near-break up of the annual historical conference at the National Library by persons who had heckled pro-government sentiments when he was about to deliver his presentation. Justice Brassington Reynolds, after hearing submissions by both Jagdeo’s lawyer, Anil Nandlall and defence lawyer, Nigel Hughes ruled that he would admit the document only for identification purposes. The Tuesday afternoon hearing was dominated by Hughes efforts to elict testimony from the first witness- Cabinet Secretary, Roger Luncheon- that government’s practices in approving Guyanese as Honorary Consuls to foreign countries, the selection Chairmen of the Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM), the granting of Cuban medicine scholarships, award of road contracts and employment practices at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation favoured mainly Guyanese of East Indian descent.

In ruling on the admissibility of the report by the UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Gay Mc Dougal prepared after her visit in July 2008, Justice Reynolds emphasized that he was doing so for identification purposes only. The reason, he explained, for such a ruling was that Luncheon said that he had “digested” a copy of the document and that it was repudiated in its entirety. “There will be no need to examine him on the content of the document,” said the judged. Luncheon, who is also Head of the Presidential Secretariat, told the court that he recalled that the document was rejected because Mc Dougal had failed to address the condition of Amerindians but focused mostly on the situation of African Guyanese. “We invited her to do the report and she produced the report that predominantly dealt with African Guyanese and to a significantly lesser extent with our Amerindian brothers and sisters who we insisted had a much greater legitimate expectation from being seen, considered and treated as a subject of her work as a minority,” he told the court.

He said government was also taken aback by her failure to accept an invitation by the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), one of the constitutional rights commissions. Government, he recalled, also objected to the report because she failed to give an audience to a suitable cross-section of those who sought an audience with her, and her profound pronouncements after three days. The plaintiff’s lawyer, Nandlall, in his submissions, had opposed the document being admitted, saying that it contained documented hearsay, opinion evidence, no signature or anyone who could have identified a signature, was written by someone outside Guyana. “We don’t know where the document came from,” said Nandlall. In reply, defence lawyer, Hughes told the court that the document was not being tendered to test the truth of the content because Luncheon on Monday told the court that it was rejected. “The reason for tendering the Mc Dougal report into evidence is because he was familiar with it and it was rejected and repudiated,” said Hughes. “We are merely seeking to tender the document as one which the government has repudiated,” he added.

The case continues on September 20 when Hughes is expected to continue grilling Luncheon on whether the 22 top positions of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation are held by Guyanese of Indian descent.

Source

quote:

Originally posted by Gerhard Ramsaroop:

quote:

Originally posted by seignet:
This trial is really stupid. The PNC had every board member as a Negro. No indian was anywhere to be seen or heard of.

Ramjattan should have stayed away from this case.

Investments were denied to indians under the PNC, whilst the PNC supporters borrowed and had easy access to funds from the Guyana Agricultural Bank. They never invested a penny-they juss sport it all out.

In 1992 the bank was closed. Whey those negroes were going to get money to invest in the new Guyana of 1992. No free money from any bank was available anymore.

As for Government owned companies, those who headed them lived high on the hog with the finances staying at fancy hotels and eatin big. And they were all Negroes.

Guyana is really a shyte hole-and not even a single politician got the baltz to sey it the way it is.

I SAY IT AGAIN, RAMJATTAN MADE A VERY BIG MISTAKE BEING IN THIS TRIAL. It will haunt him during the campaign. he might even have to resign.

Uncle seignet two wrongs do not make a right. It is this principled stand that is embodied in Ramjattan. Yes, it may cost us some votes, especially among the older hardliners, however, it is likely to gain us much more from among the young people for whom wrong is wrong.

R u aware that many of those appointment were done under the Jagans.

Jagdeo is wrong on many counts, but not this one.

Cheddie was on a witch hunt after 1992. He simply removed blacks and replaced them with indians. All of this took place when Ramjattan was a member of the PPP. He din c anything then.

Many complaints are raised about GUYSUCO-its demise started that day the Cheddie's nominee headed it. Just do some searching and c what kind of individuals took over from the PNC.

Nonsense and Sase and other ex PPP people cannot deny their conscience. Dr. Jagan was very anti gutting of the PNC from key positions.

R u joking-the evidence right there for all to c.

How quickly he revamped the Foreign Embassies. The Government Corporation were headed by idiots he appointed.

GUYSUCO was headed by the the one had confidence in until Jagdeo removed him. He din do much btter either.

And when the AFC wins they will attempt to do samne things as well-much more dangerous though.

quote:

Originally posted by Horse Man:
Nonsense and Sase and other ex PPP people cannot deny their conscience. Dr. Jagan was very anti gutting of the PNC from key positions.

He definitely did not want to prosecute them for stealing. Perhaps, he knew his proteges were going do to much worse.

quote:

Cheddie was on a witch hunt after 1992. He simply removed blacks and replaced them with indians. All of this took place when Ramjattan was a member of the PPP. He din c anything then.

Complete nonsense. Most people were wondering if Jagan was serious by leaving a PNC Public Service in place. Most of the Public Service was staffed by card carrying members of the PNC. The major board were changed in keeping with what happens when a new government takes office. The Boards are there to carry out the policies of the new government not of the opposition. To think otherwise would be naive at best.

The question that should be asked in did the PPP Boards perform better than the PNC appointed Boards. The answer is in the records. For example, production increased at Guysuco. Electricity shortages decreased. Water distribution increased, health care improved, education services improved....

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

quote:

Cheddie was on a witch hunt after 1992. He simply removed blacks and replaced them with indians. All of this took place when Ramjattan was a member of the PPP. He din c anything then.

Complete nonsense. Most people were wondering if Jagan was serious by leaving a PNC Public Service in place. Most of the Public Service was staffed by card carrying members of the PNC. The major board were changed in keeping with what happens when a new government takes office. The Boards are there to carry out the policies of the new government not of the opposition. To think otherwise would be naive at best.

The question that should be asked in did the PPP Boards perform better than the PNC appointed Boards. The answer is in the records. For example, production increased at Guysuco. Electricity shortages decreased. Water distribution increased, health care improved, education services improved....

Agreed thankfully others can chime in and correct this garbage.

quote:

Originally posted by DND:

quote:

Cheddie was on a witch hunt after 1992. He simply removed blacks and replaced them with indians. All of this took place when Ramjattan was a member of the PPP. He din c anything then.

Complete nonsense. Most people were wondering if Jagan was serious by leaving a PNC Public Service in place. Most of the Public Service was staffed by card carrying members of the PNC. The major board were changed in keeping with what happens when a new government takes office. The Boards are there to carry out the policies of the new government not of the opposition. To think otherwise would be naive at best.

The question that should be asked in did the PPP Boards perform better than the PNC appointed Boards. The answer is in the records. For example, production increased at Guysuco. Electricity shortages decreased. Water distribution increased, health care improved, education services improved....

The trial is about Ambassadorship, Board Appointments, Awards of State Contracts, etc, etc,

Public Servants are not in the same catagory.

I take it, the electricity has been working fine, Guysuco making alot of money, crime has placed GUYANA as favorite destination.

It preached here that Cheddie was incorruptible, but he sure put alot crooks in key places. THE COUNTRY PAYS FOR THOSE IRRESPONSIBLE DECISION DAILY. The man had a natural affinity for crookish ppl-he immediately took onboard PNCites as some devious ones at that.

Examine carefully Cheddie's decisions, appointments and actions.

quote:

Originally posted by DND:
. They can say Jagdeo made poor judgment but it is difficult to prove racism.

You mean poor judgement that he excludes 55% of the population when he selects people for to posts? Especially the 30-40% black segment?