IN my previous letters, I explained that credibility is an important characteristic for columnists to possess. I also noted that Mr. Anand Goolsarran does not possess this characteristic, particularly because of his past acceptance of unethical practices when he was deputy auditor general and auditor general under the PNC regime; and also because of his current double standard in support of his best friend, and leader of the AFC, Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan.Today I would like to further examine how Mr. Goolsarran’s credibility is severely damaged.
Michael Goolsarran is the son of Anand Goolsarran and was on the AFC’s list of candidates in the 2006 election cycle. Mr. Goolsarran senior is a known supporter of the AFC, which strongly opposes the PPP administration.
Mr. Goolsarran senior is also the Director of Transparency International, Guyana. While Transparency International is controversial on its own, Mr. Goolsarran senior adds to the controversy because of his intimately close ties to the Opposition. This alone damages his credibility as his hidden motive is to promote the interests of the AFC.
As if further evidence of his close ties to the AFC is needed, the AFC nominated Mr. Goolsarran senior to be the party’s representative to the Public Procurement Commission. The fact that he did not decline the nomination reflects his commitment to the AFC, its polices and its members.
Yet Mr. Goolsarran senior likes to present an allure of independence when he uses Transparency International, Guyana to label the current administration as corrupt, unethical and non-transparent. These acts of hypocrisy need to be examined and weighed as further reasons why Mr. Goolsarran senior lacks all credibility to tell any administration about transparency and corruption.
The same way he uses his column to cherry pick the issues that will benefit his best friend Mr. Ramjattan, he equally uses his reach and title with Transparency International to promote the interests of his son and the AFC by discrediting the PPP administration.
This is yet another example of why Mr. Goolsarran lacks any credibility to be a columnist, whether on accounting, corruption or governance.
Tomorrow I will continue my series on why Mr. Goolsarran senior should not be taken seriously as a columnist or as a defender of transparency and good governance.
RICHARD PAUL