Co-founder of the International Decade for People of African Descent Assembly-Guyana (IDPADA-G), Vincent Alexander, is demanding a public apology from Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo who he says has falsely accused him of having a pecuniary interest in, and misusing the organization’s funds.
In a letter prepared by his attorney Eusi Anderson, signalling his intention to sue if Jagdeo does not apologize by this coming Saturday – September 3rd – Alexander is also demanding payment to the tune of $50 million as compensation for which he said is the restoration of his name.
According to Alexander, the Vice President among other things, maliciously defamed his character by stating that a mere $343,000 was spent on grants in 2020; though government had given the company a total of $100 million for the purpose of grants that year.
Just under two weeks ago, Jagdeo accused IDPADA-G’s founding members of using the Afro-Guyanese community for personal benefit. “Find out how much of the money [IDPADA-G receives] goes to normal Afro-Guyanese,” he told reporters, while claiming that since its founding it had received a total of $468 million from the government to promote the economic advancement and empowerment of Afro-Guyanese.
IDPADA-G has since disputed Jagdeo’s claims that it has ever misused any monies received; maintaining that its funding has been allocated to various developmental projects for Afro-Guyanese.
Alexander at a subsequent press conference had said founders are not beneficiaries of the not-for-profit company; and that “Every cent of IDPADA-G’s subvention or other revenue is spent in service to the African Guyanese community, indirectly as in the case of salaries or directly through programmes, projects, engagements, and financial assistance.”
He also said that founding members of IDPADA-G are volunteers and do not benefit from the company.
According to the lawyer’s letter written to Jagdeo which was seen by this newspaper, Alexander said that Jagdeo’s malice is evident, since a cursory perusal of the public financial records would show that the $343,000 “was the residual balance from the 2018 special subvention conferred by the government on IDPADA-G.”
That sum, Alexander said in his lawyer’s latter, was “brought forward to the 2020 financial statement.”
Alexander said that what Jagdeo has essentially tried to do, is give the impression as though the total grants disbursed by IDPADA-G for 2020 was a paltry $343,000 of the entire $100 million.
“This is wholly dishonest and defamatory. It has no basis in truth,” Alexander asserts in the letter.
He further contends that the Vice President defamed him by suggesting that he (Alexander), was part of a group of persons who received salaries and allowances “of which the global sum in 2020 was $42 million.”
Anderson in the letter said, however, that his client “has not received a salary or allowance in 2020 as alleged or at all,” while stating that Jagdeo used that to support his narrative that Alexander “was using Afro-Guyanese for his own benefit” which the lawyer says is an unfounded claim.
The lawyer then goes on to describe Jagdeo’s utterances as being made in “undiluted dishonesty” which has lowered his client’s standing both locally and internationally. It is against this background that Alexander is demanding an apology together with financial compensation.
The lawyer said that the payment “or an acceptable counter-offer” must also be made no later than September 3rd.
Anderson said in the letter that Jagdeo referred to his client’s participation in the general stewardship of the organization “as akin to parasitism by claiming that he is among a group of persons who are parasites using Afro-Guyanese just for their own personal benefit.”
The lawyer said the description is a most unwholesome one for a man of his client’s “ilk and international prestige.”
Alexander at his press conference had said that while IDPADA-G is not generally funded to provide grants, the company in 2018 received $10 million from the Ministry of Finance for grants to be distributed among Afro-Guyanese; which was largely distributed in 2018 and 2019.
He had also said that “Every cent of IDPADA-G’s subvention or other revenue is spent in service to the African Guyanese community, indirectly as in the case of salaries or directly through programmes, projects, engagements, and financial assistance.”
Alexander says in his letter that notwithstanding he is a Director, he “was never paid a penny and acted purely as a volunteer and fiduciary;” and that there exists no record public or otherwise, to contradict that.
Against this background he has contended that the Vice President defamed him by claiming that he is a beneficial owner of the organization
Alexander noted that the relevant financial documents were requested and obtained from IDPADA-G on the morning of Jagdeo’s press conference. “Such was IDPADA-G’s openness and efficiency in providing documents, only for them to be misused by the Vice-President,” he lamented.
Despite the company’s position, Jagdeo has maintained that there was a misuse of funding.
He questioned how much of $100 million allocated annually since 2019 and $68 million in 2018 was spent on paying salaries, who are individuals that were paid, what amounts were they being paid and how were they selected.
He also questioned how much of that sum was spent on rental, who owns the buildings rented, and what process was used for the selection of the buildings, among other things.
