The Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) yesterday rejected as “false” a Guyana Times article which said that Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo has been stripped of all “line responsibilities” and now reports to Minister of State Joseph Harmon.
“This is vile, reprehensible, unprofessional and against all journalistic ethics and codes. OPM calls on all Guyanese to forthrightly condemn this dastardly politically directed campaign,” a statement from OPM yesterday said.
According to the article, during his address to Parliament on Thursday, President David Granger announced a “reconfiguration” of his governing Executive structure, which saw OPM subsumed into the Ministry of the Presidency. It said that in addition to placing Nagamootoo’s PM office under the auspices of the Ministry of the Presidency, Granger also explicitly denuded his Prime Minister from any “line responsibility” such as “governance” or “media” oversight.
The OPM rejected this article yesterday deeming it “malicious, wicked and utterly false” and called on Guyanese to be aware of the “campaign” being executed by the Ramroop media group against the APNU+AFC coalition Government, particularly Nagamootoo.
In his speech to Parliament, Granger had said: “The Ministry of the Presidency has been reconfigured to combine the offices of the President, Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ministers of State, Citizenship and Social Cohesion. This combination enhances governance and, especially through the Office of the Prime Minister, manages the government’s business and legislative agenda in the National Assembly.”
The OPM said Granger was clear and deliberate in this presentation to Parliament. “This statement has been deliberately and mischievously misrepresented by Guyana Times for the purposes of its abominable and odious misinformation scheme,” it said. The statement added that Granger and Nagamootoo continue to work closely to move Guyana forward in the interest of achieving a better life for all Guyanese.
The statement said the latest “attack” by Guyana Times strategically follows the recent announcement that Nagamootoo’s portfolio has been expanded and includes Leader of Government Business in the National Assembly, Public Information, Constitutional Reform, Governance, Supervising/coordinating functions with ministries involved with domestic affairs and Cabinet co-chair.
“Minister Raphael Trotman who previously held the Governance portfolio has formally handed over all matters relating to Governance to Prime Minister Nagamootoo. Transfer of Governance staff to OPM has also been completed,” the statement added.
The OPM also called on the Guyana Press Association (GPA) to “take note of this clearly decipherable trend of abuse of media for the purposes of political attacks, spreading misinformation, falsehoods and exciting the populace.”
Relentless
According to OPM, the Jagdeo/Rohee Opposition is evidently on a relentless campaign to spread and perpetuate confusion and mischief while ignoring and disregarding the requirements for ethical practices in journalism. It said that reeling from the abysmal failure of the PPP’s widespread call to supporters in North America to picket Nagamootoo on his current trip to New York, the Bharrat Jagdeo-facilitated Ramroop media group has resorted to its familiar tactic of manufacturing untruths and misinformation, attempting to pass it off as credible journalism.
The statement recalled that it was the Nagamootoo-piloted no-confidence motion that was the precursor to the loss of power by Jagdeo/Ramotar regime.
“It is obvious that Prime Minister Nagamootoo’s No Confidence Motion has been accepted by the PPP as critical to its demitting office and the Prime Minister is being targeted in the foulest of ways for an unrelenting assault on his character and portfolio,” the statement said while charging that in recent times, the politics of Opposition Leader Jagdeo has been personal and vindictive – the thrust being an attempt to demean Nagamootoo, purely as an act of spite and vengeance for tabling the fateful no-confidence motion.
The statement also noted that PPP Prime Minister Sam Hinds’ office was housed at Wight’s Lane in Kingston, in a facility that was inadequate, congested, cramped, dusty and cobwebbed and wholly unfit. It said that this necessitated a move to more suitable accommodation for OPM, following the May 11, 2015 elections. “It is evident that the PPP is using its web of media influence and resources in attempting to divert attention from this embarrassing revelation with regard to how former Prime Minister Hinds was being shabbily and disrespectfully treated,” the OPM said.
It also pointed out that the official residence of the Prime Minister was in such a neglected state that repairs are still ongoing and this is another source of discomfiture for the former PPP regime.
Further, the OPM said the Guyana Times had published similar falsehoods. “It is now beyond doubt that the primary purpose of Guyana Times is to function purely as a PPP propaganda rag in conjunction with TVG, and other media appendages, such as the recently acquired iNews website, and other outfits owned and operated by Dr. Ranjisinghi ‘Bobby’ Ramroop, who, it is well known, shares a close personal relationship with Opposition Leader Jagdeo. Citizen’s Report, the internet news website, and the Freedom House operated radio station also form part of this media cabal,” the statement said.
“OPM alerts the public to this and advises citizens not to be taken in by the daily flood of opposition lies, falsehoods, mischief and untruths emanating from the Ramroop media group which is operating with an unmistakable agenda that is politically directed,” it added.
