–Businessman threatens to sue

KAIETEUR News has found itself, once again, the subject of a lawsuit if it fails to withdraw an article and apologise to a Chinese businessman it falsely reported on and mistakenly identified as one Su Zhi Rong.

As readers may recall, Su Zhi Rong is a controversial businessman with whom Vice-President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo is embroiled in a lawsuit.
The newspaper kicked off World Press Freedom Day with the type of reporting that sullies the reputation of good journalism.

Needless to say, this sort of false reporting did not sit well with the victim, Beian Cui, who, through his attorney, Sase Gunraj, has threatened legal proceedings if several conditions are not met.
“In the circumstances, we are instructed to demand, as we hereby do, that you publish a retraction of the said article and photograph in your next publication, giving same similar or greater prominence than the instant article.

“Our client has already been advised of the plethora of legal options available to him, and is prepared to institute legal proceedings in the unlikely event of your failure to comply,” read the letter, which was addressed to the newspaper’s publisher, Glen Lall.

It is no secret that there have been constant efforts by the Kaieteur News to discredit the government, and, moreover, Lall has been accused of using the newspaper as a propaganda machinery to advance his known political ambitions.

On Friday, the newspaper carried a front-page story with a photograph of a Chinese businessman at a People’s Progressive Party (PPP) fundraising event.
The Kaieteur News wrongly stated that the businessman at reference was Su Zhi Rong, who is the subject of a lawsuit filed by Dr. Jagdeo, and is yet to appear or counter-file a defence in that matter.

The publication has received severe criticism on social media, with many commentators expressing the view that the act was xenophobic and also driven by publisher Glen Lall’s obsession with Vice-President Jagdeo.
Just early last month, the publication came under fire for using an incorrect calculation as it sought to convey a false impression in relation to the government’s use of a 36-megawatt (MW) power ship.

Financial Analyst Joel Bhagwandin had highlighted the inaccuracies within the newspaper.
Printed bold on their front page was, “36MW power ship to cost Guyana US$2.4M annually, minus fuel”, and within the article, it was falsely calculated that “A 36MW capacity plant is expected to generate some 315,360,000-kilowatt hours per year, which would mean an annual bill of $2,087,683,200. This, in addition to the 0.98 US cents maintenance fee, will add an additional US$309,052,800, or cumulatively US$2,396,736,000.”

Bhagwandin has exposed the publication’s usual miscalculations on Facebook, by stating: “According to KN’s calculation, it will cost US$2.4b, and in the headline they have US$2.4m… simple calculation (multiplication) they can’t do correctly…. 315,360,000 kwh X US$0.0776 = US$24.471m…NOT US$2.4b (KN calculation) … That is one year’s oil revenue… (US$2b).”
Also, on April 12, the newspaper was forced to apologise to the government for a false publication.
It had issued a retraction and apology, which was tucked away, for an article headlined: “Guyana borrowed to buy two airplanes for the price of four,” in its April 5 edition.
In the article, it was reported that “The Government of Guyana has borrowed a US$23.27 million loan from India to buy two Dornier 228 airplanes from an Indian Aeronautics Company when they could have gotten four for the same price.”

It then stated that the Indian government purchased six similar planes for its air force from the same company at a price of US$31.9 million.
The newspaper then quoted the Economic Times as stating: “The Defence Ministry on Friday (March 10, 2023) sealed a deal with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to procure six Dornier aircraft at a cost of Rs 667 crore for the Indian Air Force”, and then posited that Rs 667 crore is equivalent to US$31.9 million. This means that the Indian Government purchased six of the same aircraft from the same company at a price of US$5.3 million for one.

Utilising a conversion tool, it was, however, easily determined that Rs 667 crore is equivalent to just over US$80 million.
During a previous press conference, PPP General Secretary Dr. Jagdeo responded to several allegations from the Opposition surrounding the purchase of the aircraft, and made it clear that the aircraft were not bought by the Government of India and sold back to the Government of Guyana.

He informed the media that the two aircraft were bought from the Indian government and were new. They cost $8 million each and government purchased $6.23 million worth of spares for each of them, including reserve engine, propellers among other things and then spent about another million on the training of 19 persons, including the pilots, engineers and technicians flying the aircraft to Guyana.

The PPP General Secretary also addressed the Kaieteur News’ article which had the computation error, and other sensational stories.
Just last month, the newspaper was forced to apologise to the government and the GPL for false publication.
Furthermore, on several occasions, Dr. Jagdeo has had reason to call out the Kaieteur News for its frequent “distortion” of facts.