Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces, President Jagdeo, does not have a clue of how to deal with the state of lawlessness in Guyana; he gives in, it seems, to every demand made of him by the opposition PNC Leader; he devalues democracy - all of this in his rush to please the Opposition Party.

Taij Seetaram

THE People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) yesterday dubbed as "false" allegations by Chief Magistrate, Ms. Juliet Holder-Allen, carried in media reports, that the governing party has put out a contract on her life.

In a press statement, the PPP/C quoted a September 11 report on the TV Prime News programme, which stated that Holder-Allen had informed Police Commissioner Floyd McDonald that the PPP/C had put a contract on her life.

It said the news item read by Mr. Adam Harris was: "The Chief Magistrate Juliet Holder-Allen informed Police Commissioner Floyd McDonald that the PPP/C has put up a contract on her life. In the letter to the Commissioner, Juliet Holder-Allen said that a Police officer approached her in her Chambers on Tuesday to tell her the source that provided that information about the contract. She quoted the same source as saying that the contract had been entered into between the ruling party and persons in Albouystown."

Other press reports indicate that the letter was circulated to the Chancellor, the Chief Justice, the U.S. Ambassador and the British and Canadian High Commissioners, the statement said.

"We hardly think that the Chancellor or any other of the above persons who had access to the letter would release it to the press", the PPP/C said.

It said it was therefore reasonable to assume that Ms. Holder-Allen released the letter to Prime News and other sections of the press.

"Ms. Holder-Allen's allegations are false and in the absence of actual evidence, her publication of the letter to Prime News is intended to malign and defame the (PPP/C) and its leadership.

"In the circumstances, the PPP/C condemns Ms. Holder-Allen's publication of the letter, her allegation and her other antics which betray a deep hatred of and bias against the PPP.

"We can only conclude that Ms. Holder-Allen is motivated by malice and call on her to display more objectivity having regard to the nature of the alleged report, that is, that it was alleged by the Police officer to have been a rumour", the statement added.

Commissioner McDonald Thursday confirmed that he had received a letter from Holder-Allen in which she claimed that a Police Sergeant allegedly provided information to her in relation to threats on her life.

"The Sergeant in a written statement claimed that he was by the Stabroek Market when he allegedly heard a conversation carried on by two men who said that they heard that the Government was planning to have the Chief Magistrate assassinated", a Police release stated.

Security has since been provided to Ms. Holder-Allen and investigations into the matter are being carried out, the Police said.

September 14, 2002