Dear Editor,
In his March 15 Kaieteur News column, at the height of saturation media coverage of Crum-Ewing’s murder, Freddie Kissoon wrote an article headed ‘Bharrat Jagdeo and Donald Ramotar were right on what they said about me.’ It turns out upon further reading that Messrs Jagdeo and Ramotar had stated that they knew businessmen who helped Mr Kissoon build his house and Kissoon was now courageously admitting this fact.
I find this admission entirely disturbing because when political public figures journalists and commentators take ‘help’ from businessmen this tends to compromise their integrity and independence and in the case of journalists who crusade against corruption, this is particularly disappointing and sad.
The justification for taking what Mr Kissoon calls “generous help” from businessmen had to do with his inability to “buy a proper lower middle class house with salary from UG after 20 years of service.”
This is a preposterous concept and is usually the same one used when politicians and bureaucrats shake down businessmen for help to build their homes.
In Mr Kissoon’s case he needed a home “befitting’’ an academic. This also is an incredible concept where persons require homes ‘befitting’ their perceived status and years of service and where they couldn’t afford same, then businessmen are called upon to provide “generous” help to achieve this goal of having a “proper lower middle class home,” another fuzzy idea.
I find all this extremely distressing and shocking coming from an academic like Mr Kissoon and I am immediately reminded that this is what the politicians and bureaucrats do all the time and this is what Mr Kissoon and others rightfully complain about when they speak about corruption in the society.
In the same article, Mr Kissoon raises the question again about the manner in which “acolytes of Jagdeo build houses only after entering Jagdeo’s government.”
In his brave admission, he answered the question. They did it just how he did it.
Decide on a house that you can’t afford and then ask the businessmen for “generous” help.
Many businessmen will readily respond because not only politicians and bureaucrats have power but also journalists and commentators. It is indeed sad how these vile habits have spread throughout the society like a cancer.
Mr Kissoon has gravely damaged his reputation as an independent commentator and fatally damaged his integrity as a journalist. As a person, he has behaved just like the rest of them.
As for the “interesting story” about a quarry owner who is a friend of Mr Jagdeo who got a three billion dollar contract to pay off a two billion dollar loan, this is all false. But after peddling this nonsense Mr Kissoon states, “I don’t know if the story is true.” This is wickedness. It has nothing to do with journalism. It is all very sad and depressing.
Yours faithfully,
Ramson Gaskin
