The motorcycle pillion rider who was injured after being hit by a vehicle driven by Local Government Minister Kellawan Lall believes that he will be blamed for the accident, while the minister remains silent.
And now the police force has come under criticism from the Working People’s Alliance (WPA) for its handling of the matter.
John July, 58, of 81 North Sophia remains a patient of the Georgetown Public Hos-pital following last Saturday’s accident along the East Coast Public Road. Yesterday when this newspaper visited him, he broke his silence on what happened that night.
According to John, he was told not to speak to the press but relented yesterday and shared what happened that night. He said he and some friends were going to a wedding somewhere along the East Coast.
July said that he was not too familiar with the area and after spending some time at the wedding he was ready to leave and informed his friend. “We spend a good time u know. So I tell them I say boy me ain’t like this idea, 11 gone and I deh late far from me home,” said July.
His friend then arranged for him to be returned to the city on a motorcycle. “When we going, every time a vehicle flash to we he tek off he light. When we meet to the bridge, some bridge pun the line top, when we meet deh a bright line shine in we face. Because we ain’t get the right away, we slow down leh this vehicle pass. Next when we decide fuh proceed, we see this vehicle coming toward we wid one speed. Me ain’t know whey this vehicle appear from ya know,” July said.
Relatives who were present yesterday told this newspaper that the accident occurred on the “Line Top” somewhere in Annandale where there was work being done on a bridge.
“So the other broadish vehicle coming with one speed, I say hey watch wha going on hey? Well we deh till in the corner of the wall, u know. Next thing I hear bladdam! We pitch to the wall. When I catch myself, I deh pun the ground, de vehicle drive away and a white car come and tek we to the hospital,” July added.
July said he was told that the vehicle which hit him was being driven by Lall.
July sustained an injury to his right knee. “He get it slight. I get it heavy,” he said of the injuries sustained by the driver of the motorcycle.
But July believes he will not get justice from this accident since “they trying to put it as if we drunk but we didn’t drunk that’s all I know. This thing happen so sudden! See if we did see the vehicle we wudda avoid it.”
Meanwhile when this newspaper called Lall for a comment yesterday, he said: “I don’t have anything to say on that!” Then he hung up.
Yesterday in a press release, the WPA said it was “disturbed” by the assertion of Police Commissioner Henry Greene in the matter.
At a press conference on Tuesday, when questioned about investigations into the matter Greene had said, “it does appear that the other parties were wrong, but we will have to get that from the final evidence”.
The WPA said it “believes that Mr Greene’s statement in attributing blame for the accident to the injured July, ignores a number of relevant and important actions of the minister and prejudices the outcome of the investigation.”
Greene needs to be reminded that the Police Act clearly sets out his obligations under the law and that the safety of citizens requires that he act in keeping with the law without fear or favour, the release further stated.
The release pointed out that Lall broke several laws: fleeing the scene of an accident, failing to provide assistance to the victim and failing to report the accident to the police and was not held. Greene’s response at the press conference on why Lall was not held was: “I cannot explain that”.
Yesterday, July said he learnt that Lall had turned himself in at the Sparendaam Police Station where he gave a statement.
WPA meanwhile said the conduct of the GPF in vigorously investigating criminal misconduct “by political officials in high and low places in the PPP/C and the government is in sharp contrast to their frequently lawless conduct when they pursue allegations made against non PPP/C and non government functionaries.”
