I refer to the letter by Mrs Janet Jagan captioned "I received no apology" (27.2.2004).
I always thought Cde. Janet has the skin of a rhinoceros, like every person who wants to be a public figure must have. That is precisely why I wrote in my column, January, 2003, after she spoke ill of the dead in a period of mourning and when a State funeral was seen fit for that dead person, Mr. D. Hoyte, these words: "But, my god, was it necessary from such a personage as her at this juncture-mourning mode and all? How untimely, how tactless! Though truthful, but also most indiscreet, a remark of this context by such a senior political personage can be more damaging to national consensus, more pregnant with rancourous possibilities than the maddening mass in front of the National Assembly."
Hence my surprise when I first heard from Moses Nagamootoo early last year that Cde. Janet was raving mad at these words. Cde Donald Ramotar confirmed this when he told me how angry she was. If I am not mistaken, I may have responded to both these comrades that Cde. Janet ought to be thick-skinned enough to take a slap on the wrist, even when it is forthcoming from a small-fry like me.
However, after being reminded that our Party has rules and that I should not have criticized so harshly our maximal leader, I decided that indeed if it was going to be of any satisfaction to her I should admit that I had crossed the threshold and offer an apology. I so did.
Since it was Cde. Nagamootoo who conveyed to me how Cde Janet felt, I thought it best that I convey my apology through him. She never expressed any grievance directly to me so why should I have expressed directly an apology to her.
Perhaps Cde. Moses may wish to indicate whether he conveyed my apology. From what other Exco members told me, I am absolutely certain that Cde. Moses did.
What all of this is revealing is not only thin-skinnedness; additionally, it now reveals amnesia.