An unsubstantiated allegation should not be made against a person who has died

Dear Editor,

I refer to a letter of April 29, 2010 in SN, which was written by Annan Boodram and captioned, ‘Guyana’s President should be congratulated.’ In that letter, Mr Boodram accuses the late Clarence Ellis of something he did not do. Mr Boodram argues that Clarence did not speak out against rigged elections and apparently waited until Clarence’s death to make an unsubstantiated claim against him.

I find this approach by Mr Boodram to be most troubling, for to wait until someone dies, then accuse the deceased of something he did not do, knowing he cannot respond, is the worst kind of hypocrisy.

What is more disturbing is the fact that such a claim is coming from Annan Boodram of The Caribbean Voice, a member of the Caribbean media in the diaspora. Mr Boodram should have asked Clarence this question when he was alive; to do so now is an attempt to sully Clarence’s character and contribution without providing facts.

The premise of the claim in his letter is based on ‘guilt by association’ dreamed up solely by Annan Boodram. This is indeed shameful, for I expect the members of the diaspora media to have higher journalism standards.

Yours faithfully,
C Kenrick Hunte