– says “I was in Belgrade when Rodney was killed”
By Alexis Rodney
Former Commander of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and now Opposition Leader, David Granger said he was not fearful of the outcome of the Commission of Inquiry into the killing of Dr Walter Rodney, stating that he was on travel duties overseas when the incident occurred.
Granger, the leader of the People’s National Congress (now Reform) under whose administration Rodney was killed, is seen as a key witness in the incident. It was widely alleged that then President Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham used GDF Sergeant Gregory Smith to hand Rodney a bomb which exploded in his lap while he was sitting in a car outside the Camp Street Prison.
In an interview with Guyana Times International on Wednesday, Granger said the establishment of the Rodney Inquiry may very well be a political move by the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) to tarnish the reputation of the PNCR, a few years before the general elections. He deemed the timing of the inquiry’s establishment subtle, pointing out that the government, which has been in office for more than 22 years, had previous opportunities to set up the Commission. Granger said the PPP/C’s decision to establish the inquiry, apart from what has been fed to the public, may have stemmed from its realisation that “the tide of public opinion is turning against” the administration.
However, he maintained that he was not afraid of the truth. “What I’m afraid of, however, is a tendentious Commission of Inquiry, which seems to have determined guilt even before evidence has been collected,” he told GTI in the interview.
Granger believes that the alleged plan by the Government to stain the political movement will eventually backfire. “If the Commission of Inquiry does its work, it may arrive at conclusions, which might be contrary to what they (the PPP/C) expect,” Granger said.
In Belgrade
Reflecting on Rodney’s assassination, the retired Brigadier explained that he was on travel duties in Belgrade, Yugoslavia at the time. He said he was made aware of the incident through the news. Granger said the PNCR and now A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) never had any qualms over the establishment of the Commission of Inquiry. What the coalition is concerned about, he reiterated, was the appointment of Guyanese-Trinidadian Senior Counsel Jairam Seenath, which has been described as contentious.
Jairam, along with Jamaican Queen’s Counsel Jacqueline Samuels-Brown and Chairman of the Commission, Richard Cheltenham, was sworn in before President Donald Ramotar on February 24, to examine the facts surrounding the death of the late Working People’s Alliance (WPA) Co- Founder. The party’s claim surrounds Jairam’s apparent ties with the PPP/C, since he was among the key players in a recent matter involving the government. Granger said his presence on the Commission would be prejudicial.
Like the WPA, the PNCR has also raised concerns about sections of the Terms of Reference (ToRs) of the Inquiry Commission. Granger zoomed in on ToR Number Four, which directs the Commission “to examine the report on the actions and activities of the State, such as, the Guyana Police Force, the Guyana Defence Force, the National Service…. To determine if they were tasked with the surveillance of and carrying out of actions, and whether they did execute those tasks and carried out those actions against the Political Opposition, for the Period January 1, 1978 to December 31, 1980”.
He said the content is very much unfair and prejudicial as it suggests that persons within the disciplined forces at that time were involved in Rodney’s assassination. The APNU leader explained that the ToRs should be primarily concerned with finding out the truth about Rodney’s intention during the time he died.
Asked if the party has received an invitation from the Secretariat to participate in the investigation, Granger responded in the negative; however, the party was invited to meet with the Commissioners. He pointed out that if there was no redress of the ToRs, the party will recluse itself from participating in any way in the inquiry.
President Ramotar had told the gathering at the swearing-in ceremony at the Office of the President that the main reason behind the establishment of the Commission was the requests made by the political activist’s widow, Patricia Rodney, other individuals, and organisations.
