Condemning ongoing slanderous and disparaging campaign to discredit PPP Presidential Candidate

Dear Editor,
Please allow me to respond to the ongoing vitriolic and virulent campaign by the APNU/AFC supporters to discredit and disparage the credibility of Irfaan Ali, the PPP presidential candidate.
First, Ali is by far one of the most qualified persons to ever contest for higher office in Guyana. His exemplary and impeccable track record as a Government Minister, apart from being one of the leading figures behind the 2011-14 orchestrated economic boom, though the unprecedented housing programme, undoubtedly, allowed him to reach the zenith of his political career, whereby he is now the presidential candidate of the largest single political party in Guyana.
It must be noted, however, that the ongoing series of ad hominem attack and spurious allegations of academic fraud levied against Ali arouse much apoplexy amongst some of his closes acquaintances and comrades who are well familiar with his academic achievements.
Ali has a Bachelor of Arts (Hon) in Business Management from the University of Sunderland through the RDI distance learning program, a Master’s Degree in Human Resource Planning and Development from the Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University in India, and another Master’s Degree in Finance from the Anglian Ruskin University (ARU) which was offered through the Arden University.
Ali even went a step further and furnished the media with all his certificates upon their request, an unprecedented gesture by any statesman, to clarify all doubts. Such politeness and sincerity, however, has cost him. Ali is now faced with a series of unsubstantiated and spurious attacks, all with the sole intent to discredit and harm his personal reputation.
And what is even more unbecoming, is the fact that those who vehemently criticised him didn’t utter a single word of apology after they would have received written confirmation by the various academic institutions validating and confirming the authenticity of his various certificates.
However, because of his rising threat to the Government, his critics are bent on keeping the propaganda machine well oiled. One of the latest allegations was by one who goes by the name of Shawn Sam, who, on March 2, penned an article in the Guyana Chronicle accusing Ali of obtaining a fictitious Master’s Degree in Finance from the Anglian Ruskin University (ARU). Again, like other false accusers, Sam didn’t offer any substantiated evidence to support his argument, but instead resorted to the much erroneous and misleading claim that no online programme is being offered by the said academic institution.
Hence, a simple google of Anglian Ruskin University (ARU) would reveal that indeed, the university is offering online graduate programmes in finance. To be specific, the program is being offered as an MBA in Finance.
Finally, Ali’s commitment to self-improvement and intellectual development is astounding and unmatched. In his latest quest for higher education, he is currently enrolled in the prestigious and internationally recognised LLM International Commercial Law at the University of Salford.
The programme, inter alia, will explore critical areas of international commercial law, corporate law and governance. Also critical to note is that he is currently awaiting results from the University of the West Indies on his PhD dissertation.
Hence, the calibre and commitment of Ali is unmatched and it’s in my humble view such qualities should be celebrated and not condemned for mere political credits.

Sincerely,
A Grant