…but says he was sticking by his story

THE ATTORNEY General’s Chambers on Monday rubbished claims by Attorney Anil Nandlall for stating that High Court Judge Navindra Singh ordered a stay on a fraud case brought by the State against former Deputy General Manager of the Guyana Rice Development Board (GRBD), Madanlall Ramraj. But the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) executive is sticking to his story.

In fact, Solicitor-General Kim Kyte-Thomas told the Guyana Chronicle that based on information provided by State Counsel Collene Liverpool, the judge never granted a permanent stay of the matter. She made it clear that the matter was not listed to be discussed at the High Court on Monday.

The matter of Madanlall Ramraj vs The Attorney General of Guyana, High Court Action No. HC-DEM-CIV-FDA-798 was last heard by Justice Navindra Singh on June 5, 2018. She has called on Nandlall to produce a court order showing that a permanent stay of the matter has been granted by Justice Singh. “Ask him for the court order. No permanent stay was granted. The judge made no utterance that we are not in compliance with his order. His order was that whatever the magistrate ordered that is what we must comply with.”
Kyte-Thomas contended that it was ordered that only parts of the forensic audit report into the GRDB done by Nigel Hinds and relevant to Ramraj’s case be produced to his attorneys. In this regard, the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) which had brought the charges against Ramraj provided the redacted report which reportedly amounts to some 160 pages, with only areas pertinent to Ramraj’s case visible. The other areas to the report were blotted out.

“A report relevant to the particular accused was ordered not the whole report. We have complied with the order,” the Solicitor-General explained and noted that providing the entire report would be exposing the affairs of other persons named in the report to Ramraj’s attorneys.

“The entire report is not relevant to Ramraj. The magistrate ordered what is relevant to them…that is why it is in that manner and form, so that they can’t peep other people’s business,” she told the Guyana Chronicle.

Kyte-Thomas noted that as an officer of the court, Nandlall ought to know that which was ordered by the Magistrate and why. “The judge said whatever the magistrate said is what we must comply with; that is exactly what we have done. They are using the court as a tool to see what else is coming out and we will have no part of that.”
“We have to protect the confidentiality of other citizens in this country and that is why we gave them the report as is a redacted report,” the Solicitor-General stressed, while noting that the former GRDB deputy general manager is required to go to court, until he is told by the court that there is no need to. She explained too, that Justice Singh had ordered that the said report be served on Ramraj’s lawyers which included Nandalall or the case would be stayed permanently.

Additionally, the Solicitor-General noted that the High Court judge was clear when he said that if the magistrate ordered the submission of the edited report, that is what was served on Nandlall and team.

Meanwhile, earlier Monday, it was reported by an online media entity that Justice Singh stayed the fraud case against Ramraj after SOCU produced the redacted report. In response, the Attorney General’s Chambers described the report and statements attributed to Nandlall as “false and ludicrous”. “The Attorney General Chambers vehemently refutes the misrepresentations made by Mr. Nandlall as reported by Demerara Waves today 11th June, 2018. Mr. Mohabir Anil Nandlall was present today 11th June, 2018 in the chambers of Justice Navindra Singh with two other matters with the Attorney General namely; Karran Koomar and Nandranie Ramtahal v GBTI etal and the matter of Parasram Mahadeo v The Registrar of Deeds.

On the conclusion of the first matter, Mr. Nandlall then sought to engage the judge on the matter of Madanlall Ramraj v The Attorney General which was concluded on the 5th June, 2018. After raising it, the Honouarble Justice Navindra Singh correctly cautioned Mr. Nandlall that the said matter was concluded, had no return date, was not listed and if he, Nandlall had any issues with the purported ‘non-compliance’ he should properly approach the court for an order for directions,” the statement said.
The Attorney General’s office made it clear that no order staying the fraud charges against the former GRDB Deputy General Manager was made. “The Attorney General Chambers in the strongest terms refutes the allegations contained in Demerara Waves article titles ‘High Court Judge stays fraud charges against former GRDB Deputy GM after SOCU produces obscured report.’ “

State Counsel Collene Liverpool was in court for the other matters to which Nandlall appeared when according to the Attorney General’s Chambers, Nandlall was reprimanded by the judge for approaching him on the matter in an improper manner.
Nandlall stick to his story

Nandlall however, in a response described the statement issued by the AG Chambers as “bizarre”. He recounted that on June 5, 2018, the said matter involving his client was heard by Justice Singh who ordered that unless a copy of the Forensic Audit Report of the GRDB was produced to his client or himself by June 8, a number of charges instituted against Ramraj which are also pending before Magistrate Leron Daly would be permanently stayed.
Nandlall said on Friday, June 8, 2018 at approximately 3:55pm, he was served with a document at his office bearing the title, ‘GRDB Forensic Audit Report by Nigel Hinds’. That document he said contains 160 pages “and beginning from the content page to the very last page, approximately 98 per cent of the said document was blacked out by some instrument which rendered the document unreadable and indecipherable.”

The former Attorney General contends that on Monday at approximately 09:00h, and out of deference to Justice Singh and for clarification purposes, “I showed the said document to the Judge and inquired respectfully, whether the said document was in compliance with His Honour’s order made on the 5th day of June, 2018.”

“The Judge, in the presence of a State Counsel from the Attorney General’s Chambers, examined the said document and expressed the opinion that the same does not comply with his Order and therefore the criminal charges against Mr. Ramraj remain permanently stayed. The Judge further indicated that if any further directions are required of him in relation to this matter, he is prepared to give them, provided that the requisite application is made,” Nandlall contends.

Six former Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) members were last year charged jointly charged by SOCU for failing to make a proper entry into a register of a company.
Those charged are former GRDB Deputy General Manager Ramraj; former General Manager Jagnarine Singh; former GRDB board members Dharamkumar Seeraj, Badrie Persaud, PPP Parliamentarian Nigel Dharamlall and former Deputy Permanent Secretary (Finance) of the Ministry of Agriculture, Prema Roopnarine.

The charges read that the six accused between 2011 to 2015, at Lot 166-177 Cowan Street, Kingston, Georgetown, while being members of the GRDB board with intent to defraud, omitted and concurred, entries into a Republic Bank Agriculture Sector Development Unit life skill account on the general ledger of the corporation.
The six denied that in 2011, they omitted to enter some $52M in the GRDB ledger; they also denied that they omitted to enter a sum of $77.3M into the said ledger. Other charges read that between the years 2014 and 2015, the sums of $130M, $9.7M and $145M were respectively omitted from the GRDB register.