Basil Blackman not Ministry of the Presidency official

Last Updated on Tuesday, 25 April 2017, 14:45 by Denis Chabrol

The Ministry of the Presidency said Mr Basil Blackman is not an official of that top government ministry, almost one year he was named by Minister of State, Joseph Harmon as an honorary adviser.

“The Ministry of the Presidency wishes to inform all and sundry that Mr. Basil Blackman AA, the individual mentioned in the sensational report, is not an adviser to His Excellency David Granger, President of the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, neither is he an official of the Ministry of the Presidency,” the statement said.

Back in May, 2016 Harmon had listed Blackman as one of among 33 honorary advisers who were not being paid but possessed their “relevant qualifications include their willingness to contribute to the struggle for improved governance.”

Expressing concern about what it deemed the “sensational and misleading” headline of the article titled “Man fingered in plot to assassinate Granger attended Presidential Adviser’s recent birthday party,” the ministry called for a retraction.

“The Ministry of the Presidency demand that Demerara Waves immediately retract the erroneous headline and all content of the above mentioned article which stated that Mr. Basil Blackman is an official of the Ministry of the Presidency.”

Meanwhile, Blackman told Demerara Waves Online News earlier Tuesday that he did not know all the attendees at his birthday party and he hours later Tuesday contacted the businessman personally. He said the businessman told him that he was never at the birthday party and that he is a Muslim and he does not attend such social events.