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Said from the heart, my brethren and well-said.
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Originally posted by Lazie View Post
Gleaner EDITORIAL:-
EDITORIAL - Does Mr Golding have the moral authority to lead?
Published: Thursday | May 13, 2010
Prime Minister Bruce Golding, we conclude, knowingly and deliberately, misled Jamaica about his, and his involvement in the Manatt, Phelps & Phillips affair.
Of course, the has not overtly, or frankly, conceded his lies in his parliamentary statement on Tuesday, preferring, even at this late stage, to hide behind obfuscation and semantics. But Mr Golding admitted that he sanctioned the ruling Jamaica Labour Party's (JLP) hiring of Manatt to lobby the US Government on behalf of Jamaica over his administration's refusal to extradite alleged drug dealer and gunrunner Christopher 'Dudus' Coke.
It is useful to remind ourselves of some of the salient issues in this controversy.
When Dr Peter Phillips first claimed that the Government, using the law firm of JLP member, Harold Brady, had hired Manatt to lobby for it in the Coke matter, Mr Golding all but dismissed the assertion out of hand. Mr Golding did not even hint that, as leader of the JLP, he had authorised party officials, who remain unnamed, to engage Manatt. He lied by omission.
Claiming ignorance
Further, not only did claim ignorance of a deal, Mr Golding's information minister, Daryl Vaz, gave Mr Brady 24 hours to have Manatt rectify its declaration that it represented the Government.
Mr Golding subsequently claimed that last December Solicitor General Douglas Leys happened to meet Mr Brady on a, who raised the possibility of Manatt assisting in the Coke extradition dispute. Mr Leys, on that basis, invited a Manatt representative to a meeting with US State Department officials, but merely as an observer. Mr Leys, though, revealed that he had spoken to Mr Brady on the matter months earlier.
As the embarrassment deepened, Mr Golding gave the job of damage control to the JLP's general secretary, Karl Samuda. He reported that some JLP members - he made it appear on their own volition - had, with Mr Brady's help, engaged Manatt. Mr Samuda also reported that the junior foreign minister, Dr Ronald Robinson, while on a private trip to Washington, had had a brief social encounter with Manatt officials. Mr Golding has now indicated that the meeting, though unofficial, was far more substantive than a "brief social encounter".
By Mr Golding's admission, the deal with Manatt was sanctioned by himself as leader of the JLP who, lest he forget, is also the prime minister of Jamaica. Mr Golding knew, as he told Parliament, that Mr Brady was in discussion and correspondence with Solicitor General Leys since last September on the Coke matter and the use of Manatt.
Indeed, we are surprised at Mr Golding's suggestion that someone as smart as Mr Leys did not realise that an email address to which he forwarded information to Mr Brady belonged to Manatt.
And the Manatt people, by the PM's implication, stupidly used their correspondence with Mr Leys and the meeting with Dr Robinson to assume they were acting on behalf of the administration.
Mr Golding must now tell us truthfully whose interest was being protected in this affair, name those who engaged Manatt, say who paid the bill and invite the contractor general to investigate the affair.
In many democracies, deliberately misleading the country is cause for a prime minister to resign. Mr Golding and the Jamaican people must decide whether the PM's lies now render him a fatally flawed leader.
The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should
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Lazie, how can you continue to claim Likle Brucie is not a liar and has not acted against the country's best interest?
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."Comment
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yuh know! thanks
BLACK LIVES MATTERComment
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Why this is so difficult a concept for Lazie to grasp is beyond me. I guess he figures he has no choice but to hang on the the "show the evidence" line.
At this point it almost does not matter if the warlord is finally extradited or not.
Firstly, the PM is dishonest to the core and can never be trusted by the Jamaican public again.
Secondly, just the idea that the JLP leadership has gone to this lengths, putting the countries reputation further in the dirt, to protect this guy is sickening."It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men" - Frederick DouglassComment
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LETTER OF THE DAY - Golding's dubious distinctionOriginally posted by Lazie View Post
Published: Thursday | May 13, 2010
The Editor, Sir:
On Tuesday, the country listened as our prime minister, Bruce Golding, attempted to make a most duplicitous, disingenuous and dubious distinction between his administration and his party.
According to Mr Golding, "What we have, therefore, is a dispute regarding the application of the Treaty." The parties to this dispute - to my knowledge - are the United States government, represented by that country's Department of Justice and the Jamaican Government, represented by our own Ministry of Justice.
If that is the case, the prime minister expects us to believe that he, in his role as leader of the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), sanctioned the retaining of a law firm to intercede with US authorities in regard to a dispute to which the JLP was not a party. What was the JLP's interest in this 'treaty dispute'? What would provide them sufficient motivation to expend financial resources to intervene on behalf of the Government or on behalf of the accused?
What do you expect us to believe?
The prime minister further expects the Jamaican people to believe that a reputable US law firm would accept a retainer and a foreign government as a client without any assurances that the Government had indeed retained their services. And further, that this law firm would have offered and been allowed to attend a scheduled meeting with State and Justice Department officials under the mistaken impression that Harold Brady was acting for the Government - an impression no doubt reinforced by the solicitor general's discussions with the firm about issuing a post-meeting statement.
The prime minister's statement to Parliament has left more questions than it has provided answers. Some of these questions are:
1) What information did the solicitor general provide to Mr Brady, a private citizen not working on behalf of the Government, during their email correspondence in September?
2) Who led Manatt, Phelps & Phillips to believe that Mr Brady was acting for the Government of Jamaica?
3) Is it lawful for a citizen to misrepresent the Jamaican Government?
4) Why was Manatt, Phelps & Phillips - a law firm not retained to act on behalf of either party to this treaty dispute - invited and allowed to attend a meeting of State and Justice Department officials?
5) Why did the solicitor general choose to discuss issuing a release after the meeting with Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, a law firm not retained to act on behalf of either party?
This issue is no clearer and the waters surrounding it no less murky for the prime minister's statement. What is clear, however, is that when Mr Golding told Parliament that "the Government of Jamaica has not engaged any legal firm, any consultant, any entity whatsoever in relation to any extradition matter other than deploying the resources that are available within the Attorney General's Department", his words did not meet the highest standards of truth and accountability that we should expect from our leaders.
I am, etc.,
ANTHONY SMITH
stretch_jm@hotmail.com"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."Comment
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Lazie, how many lies appear in this editorial?
BLACK LIVES MATTERComment
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Where can I verify that statement?
Kingston is Jamaica, sounds more like that.
TG is PNP?
You can do better than that cho.
SMove from under Don1 coconut tree.
If a laugh ah popup.
Next joke.Comment
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I hear you can say anything in Parliament and you wont be proscuted, even big badwudsComment
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Really? Up to last week you accused me of supporting criminality ... why is that? Remember this is b4 the recent revelation. Now that you have another means to express yuh dislike for Bruce ... yes ... you've moved on.Originally posted by Mosiah View Post"Jamaica's future reflects its past, having attained only one per cent annual growth over 30 years whilst neighbours have grown at five per cent." (Article)Comment
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the way i see it, anyone who supports Bruce on this supports criminality, thuggery and garrisons.
BLACK LIVES MATTERComment
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I keep hearing dis ting about Mannat being worse than Trafigura.. not sure I see how.. one involved a Crime under Dutch Law and the PNP a party to it, the other.. well.. a lobbying effort by the JLP to assist in a standoff more like a information seeking venture that bore no fruit.. Mannat get used and abused...
Babylon is still an accomplice to a crime under Jamaica Law...
Mi nuh unnastan how Bruce become di bad guy... very odd...
I sense political forces at work, propoganda and sensationalism.. people really bored.. I guess wi haffi wait till World Cup start...
Hopefull USA will sort out demselves soon suh wi can send Dudus on a Holiday and put this one to bed..
There is serious work to be done yet before mi get mi Latte..Comment
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Jamaican Law protects all.. unless you want to make up a new system of Laws..
It have nutting tuh duh with Bruce.. is not him mek di Law..
Please quote the lie.. I bet you cannot !
The question is what are you on wid yuh poor propaganda..Comment
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Yuh tink yuh on di Campaign trail.. is who you really tying to convince with yuh stupid rhetoric..?
Mi ask yuh again.. what yuh did seh bout Omar and him 'run wid it' ?
It deh pon TAPE.. nutting to speculate about..
Cue the crickets..
9 Day Wonday and Storm in a Teacup probably did sound cute tuh yuh back den.. it ah guh bun yuh now..
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propaganda definitionOriginally posted by Maudib View Post
propa·ganda (präp′ə gan′də; also, for 2 & 3 prō′pə-)
noun
1. R.C.CH. a committee of cardinals, the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, in charge of the foreign missions
2. any systematic, widespread dissemination or promotion of particular ideas, doctrines, practices, etc. to further one's own cause or to damage an opposing one
3. ideas, doctrines, or allegations so spread: now often used disparagingly to connote deception or distortion
BLACK LIVES MATTERComment
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the lies have been quoted all over the place. in many instances, you have to compare statements against each other, but they are there for anyone and everyone to see CLEARLY. and people like you who keep askng for these lies to be quoted are yourselves being disingenuous.
BLACK LIVES MATTERComment
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