Ms Jaya Manickchand, counsel for Mr Shyam Nokta says Mr Nokta has been working in the Climate Change Unit of the Office of the President without remuneration.
Her statement was contained in a letter she wrote to Mr Christopher Ram in relation to a letter he authored in the January 24, 2011 edition of Stabroek News under the headline ‘Mr Nadir here are some of the state entities with poor audit records.’ Ms Manickchand’s letter was also copied to Stabroek News.
In his letter, Mr Ram had addressed the issue of contract employees working at the Office of the President and had said that Labour Minister Mr Manzoor Nadir should know that the lower level skills are commingled with political appointees and he proceeded to provide a list which included Mr Nokta’s name.
He then went on to say that “Mr Nadir should tell us which one of these contract persons earns less than $500,000 per month…”
In her letter, Ms Manickchand said, “Had you exercised prudence and an iota of research …you would have known that my client is not remunerated by the Office of the President or the Government of Guyana for his service to his country in the Climate Change Unit. In fact, Shyam Nokta has selflessly contributed his knowledge and skill to the said unit without remuneration.”
