THE People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) has expressed disappointment with two media houses which have failed to publish a statement released by the party on Thursday.

The statement sought to urge all to join the governing party in the fight against all forms of racism and for equal opportunities for all in Guyana and further afield and had alluded to remarks made by former President Bharrat Jagdeo at the funeral service of late PPP leader, Pandit Reepu Daman Persaud, which attracted some criticism from the Opposition media, including the “Kaieteur News” and the “Stabroek News”.

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, during a press conference at Freedom House yesterday, said that the press has a great role in any society and with that comes great responsibility.
He pointed out that people are constantly calling for press freedom, noting that there is so much press freedom in Guyana that it now has to be monitored. Nevertheless, he reiterated that with equal force, that freedom and power brings a responsibility to be impartial and independent.
Nandlall added that it is patently obvious that they may not agree with the views of the party but stressed that that cannot be the basis for not publishing the views of the PPP.
He further said that if these media houses cannot publish views, other than that of their own, that itself is a violation of press freedom.
Meanwhile, PPP executive member Zulfikar Mustapha said that two daily newspapers are very hostile against the party, and very often fail to publish its press statements.
He advised that the statement issued Thursday was sent to the Editor-in- Chief of both newspapers and that they were even called and they both said that they would publish it.
According to Mustapha, Kaieteur News and Stabroek News created a negative perception surrounding the former president’s statements and that PPP responded to, but not even a line from the statement was published. This, he said, is a deliberate attempt to cause a negative perception.