Jagdeo questions AG’s credibility to remain in office

Pressure is rising for the current administration to take immediate action against its legal advisor, Attorney General Basil Williams, over his attitude towards a High Court Judge, Justice Franklin Holder, on March 23.

During a news conference on Monday, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo suggested that President David Granger should do another Cabinet reshuffle and place Williams in the Social Cohesion Ministry – where a previous minister who was involved in a major scandal was reassigned.

“It’s the President that has to discipline him. The President can do so by removing him from office, or do what they have done before — to reshuffle (him) to another ministry, maybe the Ministry of Social Cohesion. They can do various things,” he stated.

The former President emphasised that the behaviour exhibited by Williams − not just during the court case, but during his attempts afterwards to twist reality and cast blame elsewhere − was unbecoming of the State’s Minister of Justice and of a person who is a Senior Counsel.

“He’s the person representing the State,” Jagdeo said. “He has to do so with decorum and respect befitting of the office (he holds).”

Jagdeo also criticised all attempts being made by “sycophants” of the Government to paint the picture that the Attorney General was “an angel” in the court proceedings involving trade unionist Carvil Duncan, where his predecessor Anil Nandlall was the defence attorney. “We’re living in a country where people can take reality — even written words and facts — and convert (it) into something else,” he lamented. He was referring to the State newspapers’ attempts to portray the Attorney General as an innocent bystander.

Jagdeo also referred to the employees of the AG’s Chambers who had written letters confirming Williams’s version of the event.

Justice Holder has since complained to the Chancellor of the Judiciary about the Attorney General’s “disrespectful” and “egregious” behaviour in his courtroom, and has called for an apology in an open court. However, Williams has since responded, saying, “I don’t know about apology”.

Reports are that Williams had declared he can “say whatever I want to say wherever I want to say it”, and had gone on to utter what many believe is a subtle death threat, to the effect that “the last magistrate” who had told him what to do “was later found dead”.

Jagdeo, former President of Guyana and General Secretary of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), has reiterated that a Police investigation must be launched into that Attorney General’s statement, and has expressed support for the actions taken by Justice Holder, noting that “he did the right thing”.

He has also declared that the matter should not only be treated as an issue of contempt of court; but against the backdrop of all the blunders Williams has made and the current low level of his credibility, his remaining in the office of the Attorney General should be re-examined.

“This is the Minister of Justice; the Attorney General; the Leader of the Bar, and a Senior Counsel. That is the difference here, and so it has to be dealt with in the judicial system — the disciplining of him. And the President, the Executive, has to look into this matter too,” he stated.

Jagdeo said he views this entire development as yet another attempt by the Attorney General to influence the Judiciary — a claim Williams continues to deny. “They have been using the Chronicle in particular to destroy reputations of members of the Judiciary; carrying out an agenda,” Jagdeo charged.