Dear Editor,
I wish to reply to a letter written by Wesley Kirton (‘Florida event is private by invitation only’ SN, June 11) in response to my letter (‘Are two US events public or private?’ SN, June 10). Mr Kirton wrote only in relation to the event in Florida.
He objects to my description of the document inviting people to this event as a “flier”. He prefers the label “invitation”. Quite frankly, this is a distinction without a difference. Significantly, the document charges an admission fee of US$35. My interpretation is that any member of the public who pays that admission fee would be admitted into the event.
That fact, coupled with the event being described as a “Town Hall Meeting and Reception”, in my view, ought to settle the issue as to whether the event was a private or a public one.
Mr Kirton informs us that one way tickets from Guyana to Miami were paid for, for the two ministers, by the person who extended the invitation. No mention is made of who is responsible for the other associated expenditures.
Mr Kirton refers to an event which I attended in Florida when I was Attorney General to mark Guyana’s Independence Anniversary.
I was accompanied by my wife. Mr Kirton raised the issue of who financed that trip. I was on official business representing Guyana at an Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism meeting in Miami.
As I was there, I was invited to speak at the event to which Mr Kirton refers.
Whenever I travelled on official business and my wife accompanied me, I paid for all expenses in relation to her. Coincidentally, I am informed that when ministers of this government travel with their spouses, the state pays all expenses for both of them.
Mr Kirton confirms that cheques were required to be made payable to the account of “APNU GUYANA INC.” He also confirms that the proceeds are for the President’s Five Bs Programme ‒ a programme of the Government of Guyana and not a party programme of the APNU.
It ought to be common knowledge that the laws and the Constitution of Guyana mandate all government programmes to be funded by monies appropriated via the National Assembly from the Consolidated Fund.
Hence the constitutional requirement that all monies received by Guyana shall be paid into and form one Consolidated Fund.
In short, monies that are raised at a private event for the purpose of funding government projects are unlawful and extra-constitutional.
Yours faithfully,
Mohabir Anil Nandlall,
MPAttorney-at -LawI wish to reply to a letter written by Wesley Kirton (‘Florida event is private by invitation only’ SN, June 11) in response to my letter (‘Are two US events public or private?’ SN, June 10). Mr Kirton wrote only in relation to the event in Florida.
He objects to my description of the document inviting people to this event as a “flier”. He prefers the label “invitation”. Quite frankly, this is a distinction without a difference. Significantly, the document charges an admission fee of US$35. My interpretation is that any member of the public who pays that admission fee would be admitted into the event.
That fact, coupled with the event being described as a “Town Hall Meeting and Reception”, in my view, ought to settle the issue as to whether the event was a private or a public one.
Mr Kirton informs us that one way tickets from Guyana to Miami were paid for, for the two ministers, by the person who extended the invitation. No mention is made of who is responsible for the other associated expenditures.
Mr Kirton refers to an event which I attended in Florida when I was Attorney General to mark Guyana’s Independence Anniversary.
I was accompanied by my wife. Mr Kirton raised the issue of who financed that trip. I was on official business representing Guyana at an Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism meeting in Miami.
As I was there, I was invited to speak at the event to which Mr Kirton refers.
Whenever I travelled on official business and my wife accompanied me, I paid for all expenses in relation to her. Coincidentally, I am informed that when ministers of this government travel with their spouses, the state pays all expenses for both of them.
Mr Kirton confirms that cheques were required to be made payable to the account of “APNU GUYANA INC.” He also confirms that the proceeds are for the President’s Five Bs Programme ‒ a programme of the Government of Guyana and not a party programme of the APNU.
It ought to be common knowledge that the laws and the Constitution of Guyana mandate all government programmes to be funded by monies appropriated via the National Assembly from the Consolidated Fund.
Hence the constitutional requirement that all monies received by Guyana shall be paid into and form one Consolidated Fund.
In short, monies that are raised at a private event for the purpose of funding government projects are unlawful and extra-constitutional.
Yours faithfully,
Mohabir Anil Nandlall, MP
Attorney-at -Law
