Latest update March 28th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jul 07, 2015 News
As he finally faced a topic that he desperately ran from in the past, former Attorney General, Anil Nandlall did not deny that his was the voice heard on the recording warning of a possible attack at Kaieteur News.
Nandlall had said that the attack could result in the loss of “innocent” lives. This time, he repeated that he was talking to an old school friend and had no idea he would have been betrayed.
Nandlall said this on Sunday afternoon as he appeared on a radio programme ‘Hard Talk’ aired on 90.1 Love FM. The programme is hosted by Chris Chapwanya.
Last October, a profanity laced recorded telephone conversation between Nandlall and senior Kaieteur News reporter. Leonard Gildarie, was released to the public and went viral.
The recording prompted a criminal investigation and also saw calls and protests for Nandlall to resign as Attorney General or be fired. This was a call that was echoed by Courtney Crum-Ewing who was subsequently killed in Diamond Housing Scheme.
At the time when the recording was released, the then People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government attempted damage control. It made several pronouncements including that the then Minister was illegally recorded. At one point the government said that it would have checked the authenticity of the tape insinuating that it was manipulated.
But when he appeared on the radio programme on Sunday the former AG did not mount such defence. Instead, he clung to what he said was a classic case of betrayal. He said that the situation was made bigger than it really is.
The betrayal line of defence pushed the journalist who stayed quiet all along to finally come out and say otherwise.
Nandlall had told Chapwanya, “The persons who have spun that out of control are persons who would not vote for the PPP – they are not my supporters.”
He said he did not fathom that his remarks would have been made public since he presumed he was speaking to a former classmate and not a journalist.
“I was having a conversation with this gentleman whom I have known for several years; yes he is working at the newspapers but I wasn’t calling him in that capacity. It’s as if I call you one day and you and I are friends …I’m not speaking to you in your capacity as a reporter but that was the spin that was put to it.”
Nandlall dubbed the remarks as “unfortunate” and said that he is not of the opinion that he should have abandoned his post as Attorney General and Legal Affairs Minister.
“We all make unfortunate remarks, we all have conversations that we all hope will never see the light of day…We have our private conversations, I never thought this thing would be taped. I never thought it would be released as a news item and going to be all over the world,” he stated.
Yesterday, the journalist who Nandlall keeps acknowledging to be his friend and former classmate totally disowned the former Minister.
He posted on his Facebook page, “I am getting a little tired of this classmate thing. I stayed quiet throughout this entire episode.”
Gildarie noted, “Nandlall again says I am his classmate and the DPP (Director of Public Prosecution Ali) Hack used the argument of classmates also…My statement to the police who came to my home to arrest me last year never mentioned anything of a best friend.”
The journalist questioned, “Could Mr. Nandlall say which classes we were in together at QC? We were best friends…where did we ever go for a drink? Who was my form master or mistress?
Which (school) year was I in? Does he know my parents? The answers will speak for themselves.”
Gildarie continued, “The DPP erroneously concluded that because I was a school chum of Mr. Nandlall then the statements had to be taken as such. How did the learned DPP arrive at that decision? Again I believe as a journalist I should not be making the news but rather writing it.”
Nandlall was heard saying that there are plans afoot to kill “innocent people” working at Kaieteur News in reaction to the many exposing stories the paper had been carrying.
He was also heard admitting that he used taxpayers’ money for personal reasons.
The Attorney General, in the recording referred to a female Kaieteur News reporter as a “lil thing” and advocated that his uncle, Kamal Mangal, got an opportunity to “f**K de girl.”
Nandlall said, “I told Adam [Adam Harris, Editor, Kaieteur News] everybody don’t have a newspaper to use as a weapon, I told Adam people got weapons. If they continue to attack people like this and they [people] have no way of responding, they will just walk with their weapon into that same F**king Saffon Street office and wah come shall do.”
He further said, “Innocent people got to pay for f**king Paul… I tell you honestly, man to man, that will happen so the quicker you get out of there, the better for you.”
“There is a simpler way of dealing with this situation you know, I tell Glenn already. He knows I have capacity and I know his. I don’t have to go to Court every day and issue press statements, I don’t have to resort to those methods…there are far more effective measures to which I can resort.”
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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