–over ‘defamatory publication’
ON August 8, 2025, Guyana Standard was served with a formal pre-action letter from the legal representatives of Kesh Nandlall, Team Leader of the Executive Management Committee of Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL)
The letter demands a full and unequivocal apology following the publication of allegedly defamatory statements linking him to corrupt dealings with Method4 Engineering.
According to the letter, Nandlall is a respected professional and is also a member of the Association of Chartered Accountants, United Kingdom, a Chartered Certified Public Accountant of Ontario, Canada, and holds a master’s degree in business administration from Athabasca University in Canada.
With over 15 years of experience in executive roles at Fortune 500 companies and multinational corporations in Canada, Nandlall’s lawyer said his career has been marked by professional distinction.
It was noted that he is a family man with two children, including a daughter currently enrolled in medical school in New Jersey, USA, while his wife serves as Director of Finance at a large company in Ontario.
The letter, addressed to Abena Rockcliffe, owner and editor of Guyana Standard, refers to an article published on August 6, 2025, titled “Govt. mum on Method4 affairs because it was ‘bitten by its own’-source”, hosted on the Guyana Standard website.
Although the article did not explicitly name Nandlall, the letter said it implied through innuendo that he was involved in an illicit and corrupt scheme with Method4 Engineering, allegedly aiding the company to secure a US$7 million contract with GPL.
Further compounding the matter, the letter stated that on August 7, 2025, during a press conference hosted by Vice President and People’s Progressive Party General Secretary Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, Rockcliffe questioned the Vice President about the article.
She asked whether the government had information linking Nandlall to the alleged corrupt transaction with Method4 Engineering.
The press conference was streamed live and widely shared on multiple social media platforms, drawing millions of views locally and internationally.
According to the legal letter, the combined effect of the publication and subsequent questioning conveyed the damaging message that Nandlall is corrupt, engaged in criminal offences, breached fiduciary duties to GPL, and is unfit for his professional and official roles.
The letter states these allegations are “clearly defamatory” and have caused significant harm to Nandlall’s professional reputation and standing within society, as well as jeopardised his employment and the trust placed in him by the Government of Guyana.
Beyond the professional ramifications, the letter underscored the personal toll on Nandlall and his family, describing “tremendous trauma, pain, anguish, public embarrassment and humiliation,” affecting not only Nandlall but also his wife and daughter, with the latter facing distress among her medical school peers.
The letter, penned by attorney-at-law Rajendra Jaigobin, demands that within 72 hours of receipt, Guyana Standard issue a full and unequivocal apology to Nandlall and his family, retract the offending publications from all platforms, and ensure that the apology receives equal or greater prominence than the original content.
Failure to comply, the letter warns, will result in immediate legal action, with noncompliance to be considered an aggravating factor in damages sought.