AG sues Rowley By JADA LOUTOO and NALINEE SEELAL Friday, September 12 2014 ATTORNEY General Anand Ramlogan has filed a defamation claim against Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley over statements the People’s National Movement (PNM) leader made regarding emails. The claim for substantial damages was filed yesterday in the Port-of-Spain High Court by attorneys Pamela Elder SC and Gerald Ramdeen instructed by Richard Jagai. According to the lawsuit, Rowley is alleged to have repeated statements he first made in Parliament that Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Ramlogan conspired with other senior Cabinet members to commit serious criminal offences, including harming a journalist, removing DPP Roger Gaspard by having him appointed a judge, spying on the DPP and various acts of corruption. These statements, according to Ramlogan’s lawsuit were repeated by Rowley at a PNM public meeting at the Croisee, in San Juan on May 23 last year, three days after he (Rowley) presented the purported emails in Parliament during a sitting of the House of Representatives. At the time, the Prime Minister denied the allegations in Parliament and referred the matter to the Commissioner of Police for investigation. Ramlogan also denied he had the email address ‘anan@gmail’ as his email address was ‘[email protected]’ and the email exchanges referred to by Rowley could not have been sent from his bona fide account. A motion of no confidence in the PM and her government was filed by the Opposition, in which Rowley introduced the purported emails, was defeated on May 22 last year. According to Ramlogan’s lawsuit, Rowley admitted to having documents which he purported to be email exchanges between the PM, AG, National Security Minister Gary Griffith, among others, for over six months, but had failed to report the matter to either the police or the Integrity Commission. The AG’s claim asserted that the Opposition Leader knew or ought to have known that the documents were fraudulent, yet he continued to repeat them. The voluminous document filed in the court yesterday also provides the full statement made by the Opposition Leader in the Parliament and at the public meeting; the Hansard of debate on the no-confidence motion; newspaper reports on the emailgate issue; the purported emails; analysis of the documents done by the Information Technology manager of the Office of the AG; as well as a systems consultant and the documents related to US court proceedings. Ramlogan has obtained a court order in the courts of California which resulted in global internet email service provider Google Inc tendering a sworn affidavit that it searched the emails of both AG Ramlogan and PM Persad-Bissessar and none of the emails alleged by Rowley as belonging to either were sent by them. Ramlogan has also instructed his US attorneys to cooperate with the Integrity Commission and has authorised Google to make full and frank disclosure of all information requested from his email account. Ramlogan also complains that Rowley’s statements were gravely injurious to his personal and professional reputation and brought the Office of the AG into disrepute. Ramlogan further claimed that he has suffered injury to his reputation and was put to considerable trouble, embarrassment, inconvenience and anxiety and was put to expense in defending himself and has suffered loss and damage. The AG is also seeking an injunction restraining Rowley, his servants, and/or agents from further broadcasting or publishing or causing to be published the statements he made or any similar statements. Included in the lawsuit is a claim for special damages for expenses incurred in retaining the experts as well as hiring foreign lawyers from the firm Computerlaw Group; and local lawyers.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Sep 2014 03:58:56 +0000
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