Dear Editor,
I have noted the PNCR press release of 11th Jan 2020 about an informational flyer I shared via my personal Facebook account. I have shared many things on my Facebook page, including Joseph Harmon’s vile and racist attack on the PPP/C’s Prime Ministerial Candidate, Brigadier Mark Phillips. Sharing of interesting, thought-provoking and those that broach taboo subjects are the bread and butter of social media platforms.
I wish to state categorically that I did not produce the flyer in question. Further, I have clarified that having seen the contents of the flyer, it may have been crudely worded but it has achieved the effect of bringing the issue of a Presidential candidate’s health as a campaign issue to the fore. A norm in democracies; some countries even mandate medical examination and public scrutiny of health records.
I understand that the PNCR is alien to the concepts of Parliamentary Democracy but it is out of sheer desperation and in an attempt to divert attention from their abysmal performance in office that the senior partner of the APNU+AFC coalition has resorted to milking this non-issue with the hope of attracting sympathy votes.
I welcome the introduction of important issues such as candidates’ physical and mental health into our fledgling democracy.
I look forward to seeing the health record of Mr. Granger released for public scrutiny in the near future.
Yours faithfully,
Edward Layne
