United National Congress MP Roodal Moonilal says he’s being framed.
That’s his view of yesterday’s bid-rigging and “white collar crime” claims against him by Minister in the Ministry of Attorney General and Legal Affairs Stuart Young.
“It’s a weak, timid, lame attempt at political mischief to distract from PNM’s troubles. I’m being framed. Young and Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi should get into woodworking,” Moonilal said.
“They have their problems with (suspended PNMite) Harry Ragoonanan so this is a distraction. I challenge them to say when, exactly when they’d be filing civil matters against me. A first-year law student will dismiss this.”
Accusing Young and Al-Rawi of being the architects of the matter, he added: “It’s mauvais langue, circumstantial and hearsay. It closely resembles the 2013 Emailgate messages - this is Emailgate 2.”
Moonilal said Young’s claim isn’t a new or original matter and was merely Government’s defence against an initial lawsuit filed by contractors
“The AG and Young are embarking on civil action against certain contractors in response to an original claim by contractors for monies owed to them. Government’s defence to contractors’ move is—from what Young announced—a counter claim.
“It’s arisen as contractor Namalco has a $1.2 billion lawsuit against Government for EMBDC issues. So it’s also a ruse to stop this.”
Moonilal added, “They cannot yet name me as a defendant though there are references that attempt to muddy my name—why didn’t they wait until they sue me to call my name?”
Saying it was victimisation and vendetta, he added he knew he’d targeted after he spoke last year of the AG’s children posing with army weapons.
Accusing Young and Al-Rawi of “typing up” the alleged texts revealed yesterday, he said: “It’s not the work of an independent police probe or lab analysis. Who did the forensic audit?
“Any lawyer seeing a type-written text message without certification that it’s verifiable will say they can’t go further. If they were genuine texts why didn’t they use a screen shot of them—this is fabricated, manipulated and framed.”
He added, “Things were cut and pasted suggesting wrong doing. I recognise issues—like ministry programmes—but I don’t recognise these as my text messages.”
Moonilal said the ministry would have kept track of contractors’ payments so he’d have emails with photocopies of cheques,”but it’s misrepresented here like the cheque came to my hand.”
On allegations of assisting former Estate Management and Business Development Company Ltd CEO Gary Parmasar with a house, he said he couldn’t remember if he recommended Parmasar or not.
“From President to Prime Minister (Dr Keith Rowley) have recommended people for houses.
“To say without evidence I influenced provision of housing is malicious.
“I’m writing Police Commissioner, DPP and Police Complaints Authority accusing Al-Rawi of fraudulently misrepresenting the application process to maliciously procure a search warrant on me.”
Moonilal queried how Government could give certain contractors huge contracts recently, yet believe them guilty of bid-rigging.
Moonilal said he’s also writing the Police Complaints Authority (PCA) seeking a probe of how the PNM’s Camille Robinson-Regis was able to read out a search warrant —about him last week in Parliament—which only a police officer can do.
“We deliberately allowed her to read it as we knew she was committing an offence. She’s now the subject of a letter to the PCA concerning leakage of a purported warrant to an MP and of reading it out. Parliament privilege protects what you say—not what document you use.
“She must now explain where she got the document from. It’s serious since it’s to be read only by an officer.”