By Travis Chase, HGP Nightly News |
Former Chairman of the Guyana Gold Board, GHK Lall, has broken his silence following what he describes as a “vile effort to tarnish” his reputation by social media commentator turned government contractor, Mickael Rodrigues, popularly known as “The Guyanese Critic.”
Rodrigues recently took to social media, attempting to link Lal to alleged gold smuggling operations and to the Mohamed family, suggesting that Lal had aided the family in unlawful activities. Lall, however, has firmly rejected the allegations as malicious and baseless.
“My relationship with the Mohamed — I want the Guyanese people to know this — my relationship with every Gold Board customer, from gold dealer to gold exporter, from medium-scale miner to one pennyweight declarer, began and ended within the walls of the Guyana Gold Board,” Lall said in a recorded statement.
Attorneys representing the former chairman have since dispatched a lawyer’s letter to Rodrigues, demanding an immediate retraction of the defamatory statements or face legal proceedings before the High Court of Guyana.
“It is painful for the honest work that you put out as a servant of the people to be thrown in your face, to be distorted in this coarse manner,” Lall said, visibly emotional.
The former chairman, who is also a newspaper columnist, believes that the accusations point to a broader agenda, suggesting that powerful figures may be using Rodrigues as a front.
“Tell me where this gentleman — who’s really a front for the senior people in the PPP who don’t have the guts to come out and face GHK Lall — tell me where he gets the right to call me a gold smuggler,” Lal stated.
Rodrigues, who has previously been sued for defamation, is currently facing multiple court actions for alleged libel, with a growing number of proceedings filed against him.
For Lall, the latest comments represent not only an attack on his integrity but also a violation of public decency and responsible discourse.
“Citizens have a right to speak,” he said, “but they have no right to get it wrong.”
Lal served as Chairman of the Guyana Gold Board from March 2017 to February 2020, overseeing regulatory and compliance matters in thle country’s gold sector during his tenure.
