Our coverage of the President’s meeting at Mon Repos was fair and balanced

Dear Editor,

I am not one to enjoy tit for tat letter writing but I will indulge one Mr Martin Benn in his letter captioned “Mr Moseley’s report on the President’s meeting at Mon Repos was not balanced” (08.01.31) about a story I reported on for Capitol News and the CMC Caribbean Newsline.

Mr Benn in his obvious haste to raise concerns about Capitol News using a clip with a man telling the President that maybe he should give “Corbin and the PNC a try since u nah a protect we”, omitted several other parts of the story, including the villagers calling to be armed and asking for the removal of a number of government ministers and the President’s response.

Mr Benn clearly appears more concerned about the forward and backward argument between the President and the Mon Repos residents than he is about his own security.

The fact is Capitol News reported exactly what took place as we always do. The President asked for suggestions and the man along with several other residents provided him with their answers. Capitol News has always been fair and balanced in its reporting and we do not fail to report all sides of the story.

I am finding it difficult to believe that M Benn lives in Mon Repos. A quick check of the voters list does not show any M Benn living in the Mon Repos area. However, there is an M Benn of Good Hope, ECD and another M Benn from Buxton. Perhaps the real letter writer could choose which area they would like the Benn to come from.

He is clearly a phantom letter writer and the Stabroek News should investigate its letter writers and the addresses they provide.

The funny thing is a Government PR official, Kwame McCoy who I know is hooked on Capitol News and the CMC News raised the exact arguments just a day ago, and now a letter writer appears to be raising those same arguments in the exact way. Next we may have a Billboard going up condemning Capitol News.

Mr Benn is clearly not “the real Mckoy”, and I would have expected him to be raising his security concerns in your letter columns and not questioning the editorial decisions of Capitol News and my experience as a journalist. I am no propagandist. So please Mr Benn, “don’t waste my time” as I focus on the real concerns of the mourning East Coast residents.

Yours faithfully,

Gordon Moseley

Senior Reporter/Producer

Capitol News