Latest update May 13th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jul 22, 2014 News
…but unable to substantiate claims
While the General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party Civic (PPP/C) has lashed out at the opposition People’s National Congress (PNC) saying that the party is in bed with criminals, when questioned he was unable to justify his assertions.
During his weekly press briefing at Freedom House, Rohee articulated that “evidence is there to show the PNC’s strong connection with the criminal underworld, the most recent being a photograph in circulation showing Mr. Granger at a function and in seemingly deep conversation with Kevin Fields an alleged bandit who was shot dead a few days ago.”
This recent expose, according to Rohee, “vindicates the PPP’s long held view that the PNC has criminal elements imbedded in its ranks and who are assisting the PNC in furthering of their political agenda in one way or the other. The PNC has never distanced themselves from this claim.”
He said, “The late Opposition leader Desmond Hoyte attended Linden ‘Blackie’ London’s funeral, the coffin was draped with the Guyana flag while he was hailed as a freedom fighter by the PNC. All of this was done in Mr. Hoyte’s presence.”
Rohee added, “It is this same old PNC that regards the February 23, 2002 prison escapees as ‘freedom fighters’. PNC top officials even visited some of the escapees at their hide outs at various parts of the Country.”
According to the PPP General Secretary, in the circumstances he mentioned “the only logical conclusion that can be drawn is that the PNC is reaping political and financial benefits from its association with the criminal underworld”.
“It is quite possible that the proceeds of this criminal enterprise have ended up in the PNC’s coffers. Moreover, it is generally agreed that PNC’s lawyers usually defend alleged criminals in the Courts pro bono.”
He then said that the PNC’s “criminal connection” has impeded government’s crime fighting initiatives.
Rohee then turned his attention to the media, and he blamed Kaieteur News and Stabroek News for not publishing the photo of Granger with Kevin Fields in an “attempt to cover up and or protect the Opposition Leader.”
However, Rohee was then asked when Dr. Cheddi Jagan and Azad Bacchus a gunman who was killed, were photographed together, if that suggested that Dr. Jagan was involved with criminal elements.
Rohee responded that he was “dealing with a case that is current and this case is what I refer to in the press statement. What you made reference to does not obviate Kaieteur News from the responsibility of publishing the photograph.”
Rohee was then asked if he could provide one piece of evidence of the PNC proclaiming that the 2002 jailbreak five as freedom fighters? To that Rohee responded “we will get the evidence and produce it at some point in time.”
He was then asked if what he is saying is true why is the PPP not calling on law enforcement authorities to act on the evidence to which he referred, the PNC being involved in criminal activity.
To that Rohee responded, “I don’t understand your question but what I would like to reiterate is that, if a photograph like that was available showing a government Minister or a member of the ruling party in a situation like that, I am sure that it would’ve been all over the place.”
When challenged to release the evidence of his charge, he said that at the appropriate time, “I will do so”. When asked if he was not interested in speedy justice he said emphatically “that at the appropriate time we would do so.”
When asked if he could find a paper or money trail for criminals giving money to the PNC, Rohee responded it is for “the PNC to bare their chest and come clean, let them say now that is not so, ask Mr. Granger at the next press conference if that is not happening and let him deny it.”
Rohee was then asked if he was able to say whether he can provide evidence of any charge or accusation he leveled.
“I am going to repeat again, the onus and the burden is not on me to do so. If you want to verify anything that I have said, the best thing is to go to the APNU and ask Mr. Granger…If he denies, he denies; so be it.
“I wouldn’t be interested in carrying on a debate in the matter. In the same way he denied he never had anything to do with (Walter) Rodney’s Assassination, he said he was in Hungary with the shooting of the ballot box markers, ok so he denies that’s it.”
Rohee was then asked in his capacity as the Home Affairs Minister, when was his Ministry aware that Kevin Fields was a gunman?
He replied “We were told that by the Guyana Police Force (GPF) when the shooting took place.”
To that he was asked, “So until then he was clean and he could have been associated with anybody?”
Rohee responded, “No you have to bear in mind that the Ministry of Home Affairs is not an operational body, it sets policies, when certain things get into the public domain, the Ministry expresses an interest, when it goes to the GPF based on Inquiry and the information comes back to us.”
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