MP says…Govt must account for $112M being spent on Rodney’s inquiry
By Latoya Giles
Government will first have to show how it spent $112m which was allocated for the Walter Rodney Commission of Inquiry
President Donald Ramotar
before the Opposition decides whether more funds should be voted for the Commission.
A Partnership for National Unity Member of Parliament, Joseph Harmon, made this comment yesterday to Kaieteur News, in the wake of pronouncements by President Donald Ramotar that government would be seeking more funds.
Ramotar had told reporters on Saturday that there is a possibility of more money being allotted for the Commission since it has been extended until September. The Head of State said that from all indications, with the new extension they would need more money.
Ramotar said that he could not definitively say that the entire $112m which was budgeted at the commencement of the inquiry is “exhausted”. He said that obviously once there is an extension there would be the need for more funds. “We would have to go back to parliament to get money.”
However, Harmon said that the possibility of the National Assembly voting more money to the Commission, depends on how the Finance Minister explains how the initial $112M was spent.
Harmon told Kaieteur News that he has submitted several questions to Finance Minister Ashni Singh on this issue.
According to Harmon, the Chairman of the Commission, Sir Richard Cheltenham (QC) has said that September was the extension date, but Attorney Glenn Hanoman gave December as the extension date.
He said that at the next sitting of the National Assembly, the Finance Minister will have to provide these details before any more money is given to the Commission. Harmon said that government had never given a ‘clear” indication of how the money would have been spent.
Back in February, President Ramotar said that the Rodney Commission will not come cheap and that he knew for a fact that the money would be well spent.
Ramotar had denied that there was anything sinister in the holding of the inquiry; but his government was in fact fulfilling the wishes of Rodney’s wife, Patricia.
“This process started and it was not initiated by me, but by a request by the family, particularly his wife, Patricia Rodney,” Ramotar had said.
He had said that the Terms of Reference which some parties have been protesting over, were crafted by Rodney’s family and advisors, along with some technical help from Government. Ramotar stressed that it was Rodney’s wife who made the comment about not wanting it to be political.
The terms include “examining the facts and circumstances immediately prior at the time of and subsequent to the death of Dr. Rodney in order to determine as far as possible, who or what was responsible for the explosion resulting in the death of Rodney”.
APNU Member of Parliament Joseph Harmon
Commissioners would have to inquire into the cause of the explosion in which Dr. Walter Rodney died; whether it was an act of terrorism and if so, who were the perpetrators. Commissioners would also have to specifically examine the role, if any, which the late Gregory Smith, a Sergeant of the Guyana Defence Force, played in the death of Rodney and if so, to inquire into who may have counseled, procured, aided and or abetted him to do so, including facilitating his departure from Guyana after Rodney’s death.
Since the commencement of the commission, several issues have been raised by lawyers representing interesting parties. Attorney at Law Basil Williams, Selwyn Pieters and Joseph Harmon have all been very vocal on how the commission is running.
Up to last Thursday Attorney- at-Law Joseph Harmon who is representing the Ex-GDF Association, once again called for the Chairman of the Walter Rodney Commission of Inquiry Sir Richard Cheltenham QC, to remove himself from the proceedings.
The call was made during an outburst from the Chairman when Captain Gerald Gouveia was in the witness box. “You transported a killer…” the Chairman said to Gouveia as he was seeking answers about who the former army pilot had transported to Kwakwani on June 14, 1980.
“He has already arrived at a conclusion on matters that we are here to determine. The fact that he has said that Gouveia had transported a “killer” is bringing out his own personal opinion on the matter and bringing it to the commission. Harmon stressed that they have questioned the Chairman’s bias before about statements he made at a memorial service.
According to Harmon, Cheltenham has been on record as saying that he was a follower of Rodney and that his death should be an inspiration to others.
When approached by Kaieteur News, Cheltenham had said that he was unaware of any such call for his removal. According to the Chairman, he would not be distracted. When pushed further about the comment “You transported a killer,” Cheltenham said that he could not recall and would have to check the records.
Several weeks after political activist and historian Dr. Walter Rodney was killed, Sir Richard delivered a glowing tribute to him during a memorial service in Barbados.