Station Defends Controversial Broadcasts Monday, November 25, 1996 CHANNEL 28 commentator Kit Nascimento has defended his and the station's handling of a controversial statement by President Cheddi Jagan and says the Head of State still needs to apologise for his utterance. A statement by President Jagan at the Travelodge Hotel in Toronto, Canada on October 30 which said in part that blacks are at the bottom of the social ladder has evoked strong criticism from a variety of groups including political parties. The statement said "the PPP is not an Indian party. The British and the Americans did not remove me from power and put Burnham in because of race. In fact, if they were using race, I should have been kept there and Burnham should have been kept out forever. Because as we know, black people are at the lowest scale of the social ladder". The remark by the President was first broadcast on VCT Channel 28's Evening News and Nascimento in a subsequent commentary pilloried the statement as unacceptable, divisive and dangerous. Following his commentary, it had been insinuated by various spokesmen from the ruling PPP and the government that the remarks were taken out of context or the video tape was doctored. The President has acknowledged making the remark but in a statement and address to the nation, he said that he was referring to the plight of blacks in the United States. He noted his public record in the defence of blacks and accused "troublemakers and propagandists" of deliberately distorting his statement. He has also said he has nothing to apologise for. The tape of his entire address at the Travelodge Hotel was also aired on GBC and Nascimento in a subsequent commentary on November 21 said the broadcast of the complete speech confirms the accuracy of the President's statement as aired on VCT Channel 28. Nascimento also rejected assertions by the President that he was referring to the situation of blacks in America. "There is nothing, absolutely nothing, anywhere in the entire speech made by the President that can possibly lead to the conclusion that President Jagan meant only to refer to African Americans". When Evening News first received the tape, Nascimento said that VCT Managing Director, Tony Vieira, Evening News Editor, Adam Harris, and himself viewed the tape. "We were so thoroughly shocked and dismayed that we held the tape for six days in order to be certain that it was indeed authentic and faithfully portrayed what the President had said", Nascimento added. He said that a number of prominent and responsible persons were invited to review the tape "to be sure we had understood what the President had said". He said there was no rush to judgement and that accusing Evening News and his commentary of troublemaking and mischief could not be sustained. "We did not invent the statement that Dr Jagan made. We did not distort it", Nascimento said. He contended the statement is still inexcusable and Dr Jagan should apologise for it.