IT is time that people of this nation stand up against some of the lies published in the Kaieteur News as it can mislead not only the local populace but the international community.

The latest episode involving a sluice door at Coverden depicts the poor journalistic skills of its reporters, who are eager to publish stories without any verification of the subject matter.

I wish to comment a little on the article titled: “Tender Board withholds specs from media – KN Publisher” in the Kaieteur News dated Saturday, March 5, 2011, which is another cover-up story. Having read the entire content of the article, I found it strange that Mr. Glen Lall chose to defend his article rather than offer an apology for the inaccurate article from the previous day.

The explanation that he proffers for publishing the wrong sluice does not have any merit, since it does not matter whether the picture published was of “a sluice bordering Coverden and Caledonia” since the correct sluice to be rehabilitated should have been in the picture, moreso since it was on the front page.

Another fact that should have been noted is that the National Procurement and Tender Administration Board (NPTAB) does not have the responsibility of providing specs to reporters since they could have easily bought the bid documents and seen the bill of quantity containing the specs.

I am amazed that Mr. Glen Lall would now say that tender board deliberately withheld specs from the media. I wonder why this was not published in the earlier article but rather in a later article. In fact, I doubt whether the reporter/reporters even bothered to request the specs from the tender board. All the information required was available.
The people of Guyana deserve to know the truth and no newspaper should be using its freedom of expression in such a matter. It is unethical and I suggest a full front page apology from the newspaper. I am sure I would not be the only one penning such a letter since many persons from the East Bank of Demerara, like myself, have expressed their displeasure with this article.
It would seem that the schemes of the Kaieteur News are fast catching up. For too long the newspaper has misled this country. It would seem that Mr. Lall is working against the interests of this nation by this publication. Nothing is wrong with constructive criticism, but to lie to the entire public is another matter for grave concern. Even in the Laws of Guyana, this cannot be seen as a fair comment.

Mr. Glen Lall, I urge you to publish a full apology to the people of Guyana. For too long the nation has seen you publish misinformation after misinformation. Let’s have professional ethics in your journalism.