(Trinidad Express) Attorney General Anand Ramlogan said yesterday a legal victory was scored against Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley for what he said was his failure to file a defence in a defamation case against him, involving the allegations made in the emailgate fiasco.
Ramlogan, at the post-Cabinet news conference at the Office of the Prime Minister, St Clair, presented legal documents to the media pertaining to judgment against Rowley. It ordered him to pay the AG monies to be determined by the court for defamation.
Ramlogan, in October last year, filed a defamation case against Rowley for the allegations he made in the Parliament in 2013.
Rowley had presented a series of damning e-mails to the Parliament which, he said, implicated the Prime Minister, the Attorney General and then local government minister Suruj Rambachan and National Security Minister Gary Griffith in criminal acts and a massive cover-up.
The alleged cover-up involved a major conspiracy against:
1. the Director of Public Prosecutions
2. a plot to harm and discredit reporter Denyse Renne and
3. the payment of monies in exchange for freedom by an unnamed person.
The e-mails coincided with the time when public outrage over the Section 34 scandal had reached its height in October and November 2012.
Rowley quoted from e-mail addresses contained in the string of e-mails allegedly belonging to the above officials.
Ramlogan said in light of the court’s judgment, the Integrity Commission should investigate Rowley for violating the Integrity in Public Life Act for making false claims.
The AG quoted from the high court document, dated January 14, 2015, which is addressed to Rowley, and states, “You have not filed a defence to the claimant’s statement of case and the time for doing so has expired. It is therefore ordered that judgment in default of defence be and is hereby entered against you for payment of an amount of money to be decided by the court together with interests and costs.”
The document is signed by the assistant registrar of the Supreme Court, Candice Cielto-Jones.
Another document, dated January 15, 2015, states parties are required to attend before Master Alexander at the Hall of Justice, Port of Spain, at 9 a.m. on March 10, for the assessment of damages.
Ramlogan said when the case was filed, Rowley’s attorneys requested an extension to file a defence which was due on December 16. He said a new date of January 7, 2015, was given but no defence was filed.
“I am certain the population would harbour no doubts that the emailgate fiasco is one that had no basis in fact whatsoever but was a political concoction by someone with a very overactive and creative imagination who hoped for the best because they were trying to salvage a flagging political career,” Ramlogan said.
He asked why Rowley would not defend such grave allegations.
“We are willing to entertain an apology at this stage of the game. I therefore call upon Dr Rowley to do the manly and honourable and decent thing to apologise to the Prime Minister and myself for making these scandalous allegations,” said Ramlogan.
Asked if the apology would mean
Rowley would not have to pay him
any money, Ramlogan said, “If he apologises, I will be seeking the same
amount of money but he should apologise because he damn wrong!”
Ramlogan noted when Rowley made the allegations, it was the Prime Minister who immediately requested the Commissioner of Police to investigate the matter, and although Rowley had these alleged e-mails in his possession, he never took them to the police.
“The question is whether Dr Rowley himself is guilty of a violation of the Integrity in Public Life Act by making a false complaint and fabricating and concocting a claim that would be the allegation for the Integrity Commission to investigate now,” said Ramlogan.
Griffith said he had handed over his mobile phone to the police to assist in their investigations and to prove there was no truth to the allegations.
Griffith preferred not to comment when asked if he, too, will be taking legal action against Rowley as Ramlogan did.
