Dear Editor,
Apart from the Attorney General (AG) Anil Nandlall’s penchant for verbal explosions and irrational adjectives, and in this instance his descriptions of the National Assembly’s decision to make budgetary cuts, he needs to lay out, in respectful language and logically, drawing on excerpts from the Chief Justice’s (CJ) ruling, the PPP’s case that the National Assembly cannot cut the budget. This statement is made on the supposition that the AG’s intention is to inform and educate the society. And while it may be appropriate for the AG among friends and colleagues in a social, cultural or political setting to flaunt phraseology such as “political masturbation,” “violently encroaching,” “naked and vulgar disregard for the constitution,” etc, many members of the public are disgusted and frankly offended by the stringing together of phrases that provide no elucidation.
The AG should not be unmindful that a ruling can be interpreted by anyone who can read and follow a logical path of reasoning, and that this ability belongs not only to a lawyer. So if this is how the AG conducts himself, he needs to be reminded that such behaviour towards the public is not viewed as mastery or brilliance.
If the AG has a case to make on the CJ’s ruling, let him do so coherently and spare the nation the verbal tirades, because the more he speaks, the more he confuses the issue. Charting new political ground should not be cause for further confusion, unless it is a strategy to keep the society in perpetual disarray and ignorance in furtherance of a political agenda, which at the end of the day is clearly not designed to serve society’s best interest. The media must not enable this behaviour. The independent media will decide if they want to enable this disrespect for them, the society and institutions of state by allowing the AG to use them as a vessel to ‘report the news.’
Unfortunately the AG has to be given ‘credit’ because the strategy is working, along with the fact that he is not being exposed for his misinterpretation of the CJ’s ruling based on the case brought before court. The PPP, better than most, understands the media landscape and its potency. They are exploiting the media to the fullest, albeit for the wrong reason. But can you blame them for trampling on professionalism when an aspect of professionalism, ie, to report, is being abused because reporting is not followed through with accountability and rigorous scrutiny? In our society integrity is no longer worn as a badge of honour by many, and as such the people and the media have to expose those who insult our intelligence and take our trust for granted.
And while this AG is not of the calibre of his predecessors, Fenton Ramsahoye, Keith Massiah, Shridath Ramphal and Shahabuddeen, it is not unreasonable for the society to expect and demand propriety and decorum from him in language and general conduct. The AG should not forget that beyond closed doors every time he opens his mouth he is on public display, and it is not unreasonable to expect a display consistent with the lofty standards some previous holders of this office displayed.
Yours faithfully,
M A Bacchus
