According to the Minister responsible for National Security, Senator Einstein Louison, at a Press Conference on Monday 25th July in St. George's .... "this individual has been served with documents by the Courts in the United States. The situation as it stands could mean that a Senior member of the Grenada Parliament could be tried by a United States Court for Fraud.

For multiple Fraud as it is said. This issue has massive repercussions for our National Security and image of our County as it were". The utter nonsense and blatant dishonesty of the above statement, have to be followed up and understood to be appreciated for what it is worth.

After having made the above statement, and then refusing to answer any direct question from the members of the Media who were present - the Minister then went on to say, that the Leader of the Opposition should in fact move ahead to look at the situation and look into an allegation of fraud. Then he made this disturbing statement .... "But the fact is that we are prepared to co-operate at any level with the United States Government if there is need to do so".

And having made that very loaded statement, which clearly was implying that the U.S. Government had a matter which involved a member of Parliament from the Opposition side of the House - that prompted the U.S. Embassy in Barbados, through its representative in Grenada, to come out publicly and deny that the United States had any matter of a legal nature with any Opposition member of Parliament.

But even before that diplomatic humiliation by the U.S. Government, on the very day of the pack-of-lies statement by the Minister - the very Prime Minister's Press Secretary was on the airwaves saying that part of Senator Louison's news report was not true.

And to make the whole bogus attempt-at-getting back at the Opposition in retaliation for the Prime Minister's Brief Case saga, and the now world news Commission of Inquiry - someone from the Information Division of the Prime Minister's Ministry, further called a number of Journalists asking them not to publish the news report on the Monday evening. It was published on Tuesday instead.

The legal matter, blown out of all proportion by the Senator and Minister, concerns a claim filed in a Court in New York by a Jamaican client of Peter David while he was practicing Law in the U.S.A.; in fact he still has an office in New York.

That client bought a house and had a mortgage to help finance the purchase. When she failed to pay the loan the Mortgagee foreclosed, and sold the house or started the process of sale. The client, as a Counterclaim, brought an action against all those involved in the original sale and purchase - including Peter David - claiming she was badly or wrongly advised and that is why she failed to pay.

That is the type of action, in Legal and Medical matters, filed in New York and other States in the U.S. every hour on the hour. The client's Lawyer in New York sent the claim to a Lawyer in Grenada to serve on Peter. ABC routine.

But to make a National and Regional pappy-show of the Ministry of National Security, and the Government and people of Grenada as a whole - the Senator and Minister is calling on the Leader of the Opposition to mount another "Commission of Inquiry "to investigate a Major Estate Fraud that could have massive repercussions for our National Security and the image of our people".

Now I ask you - what on earth next? That must be worse than a drowning man clutching at a stray to save himself. When the Minister of National Security, and the then DPP Mr. Hugh Wildman, could have co-operated with the U.S. Government and assisted the F.B.I. to grab Van Brink and his gang of fraudsters, before they escaped from Grenada to Uganda with all those millions of U.S. Citizens money in their crooked Offshore Banks - they chose instead to frustrate the U.S. efforts and allowed those crooks to get out with the millions.

And while Van Brink and others did not stay at large for too long, a lot of the loot was squandered, before the F.B.I. picked up Van Brink and took him back to the U.S.A. to prison awaiting trial.

And if the Minister for National Security wanted to bemoan the destructive effect of our image - from the crooks and fraudsters his Government had harboured in our land, and benefitted from their stolen millions - he could have checked the Internet the same day of his Press Conference, where he would have found the report about Carl H. Lane of Atlanta, Georgia, who was sentenced to 30 months in prison, and ordered to pay U.S. $1.058 million to a number of U.S. Citizens in restitution for moneys he stole from them while operating his Offshore Bank, "VISTABANK LTD", in St. George's, Grenada, and his commerce sham Company in Atlanta, Georgia in the U.S.A.

This crook had 18 charges of Fraud laid against him, and the news report stated that his scheme was conducted with the co-operation of the Keith Mitchell Government and its regulators, most notably Michael Creft, and the payment of substantial bribes. And he pleaded guilty to eight of those charges to get the others dismissed.

It is those kinds of dealings that have so damaged our image and goodwill, that now-a-days we cannot get anyone with integrity and a clean record wherever they come from - to come to Grenada to do business. And as a direct result, our National Security and our financial prospects in every area are in a state of total disarray - even without the ravages from Hurricanes "Ivan"and "Emily".

And now that no one is coming to our assistance with financial aid after Emily, and the Prime Minister had to go cap in hand to Washington D.C. to beg President George Bush for help - his "mouth open and words jump out" ex-PRA, and junior Minister of National Security, has openly and embarrassingly put the Bush Administration on the spot, and maybe damaged Grenada's chances of getting more aid from the U.S.A.

And just as stupidly as the original statement from Senator Louison - that the Government had to issue an apology for on Thursday 28th July - the second statement again repeated that there was a case of Multiple Real Estate Fraud brought against the member of the Opposition in Parliament.

Since only the Criminal arm of any State in the U.S.A., can bring Fraud Charges as such against anyone - and the U.S. Embassy for ALL the 51 States has made it crystal clear, that there is no such Charge pending against any Opposition M. P. - what is the use of the apology, when in the same breath the Government is repeating the same dishonest statement from Senator Louison that the U.S. Government had denied publicly?

When are we going to cease biting off the hand that is feeding us - while groping in the darkness to befriend the very enemies of those we are seeking to get help from?
It seems that we are always ever ready to jump on bandwagons going to or coming from Cuba and Venezuela - countries that we are fully aware are governed by two leaders who are in open loggerheads with the U.S. President and his Government - yet no sooner our heads hurt, or the wind and rain come calling, our Leaders are off to New York and Washington with begging bowls.

O.K., so Venezuela (Chavez) wants to give us some cheaper gas and oil, and Cuba (Castro) with a great surplus of Doctors and other Health specialists - that can be sent anywhere to boost Castro's image - are ready to send us more and more Doctors; and as people in great need we are grateful for all the help we can get...including the 50 or so persons who have gone to Cuba last week for some eye operations.

But surely those in authority, cannot be that simple minded not to be able to see just beneath the surface, of what is underneath or behind those apparent generous gestures? And since it must be very obvious to the powers-that-be, that there is a price to pay for those small gestures, on the one hand, and we have a whole lot more to lose by antagonising our long-standing Super State to the North - not to mention embarrassing our thousands of Nationals in that State's Cities, on whom thousands of local families are almost totally dependent - surely those in authority can exercise a more common sense approach, and or simple diplomacy to what they say, or do, or support, on the other hand.

The more lessons we get, or experiences we encounter - the less our leaders and those who represent us seem to learn, and they continue to mess up time and time again. Now we are hearing that Arson was the cause of the GBSS fires, but although nothing has been found thus far to link anyone to those criminal acts - a whole lot of very disturbing statements are being made by those in authority, based on incidents that took place many years ago when the situation in Grenada was very different from today.

The irony and serious contradictions, that are raising their ugly heads from those insinuations, cannot be overlooked when it is so easily remembered - that the very Sen. and Minister responsible for National Security, was a Major in the Military dictatorship that the Prime Minister is always making those derogatory statements about.

So while pointing accusing fingers across the Opposition Benches, those in authority should stop a while and count the horns on board their sinking ship.
Who knows - may be thereon the massive repercussions on our National Security may very well be present.