Mr Sharma’s is a case of note

Oct 24, 2010 Features / Columnists, My Column

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By Adam Harris

It is written in the Scriptures that the love of money is the root of all evil. Of course, people have distorted this to read that money is the root of all evil. This may also be the case because we now have the male and female prostitutes, the armed bandits, the pedophiles and of course, the beggars. These are evil people and at the root of their existence is money.
There are people who grab so much that they have more than enough to last three or four lifetimes. These are greedy people. The other day I saw a documentary on Bill Gates, the man who revolutionized the computer industry. He made tons of money and now he is giving away about ninety per cent of what he made. He is leaving ten per cent for his three children and the authorities say that this is more than a tidy sum.
I never pass judgement on people unless I have the facts. I also believe that a person is innocent until proven guilty. Here the case of Mr. Chandra Narine Sharma comes readily to mind. He is before the court on a charge of pedophilia—sex with an underage child—and he has taken ill, according to his own accounts and his family.
I remember the first time he was taken to court he appeared to collapse and had to be taken to the hospital with what was perceived to be a heart condition. In hospital there were reports that he rejected the medication by spitting it out in the lavatory. This suggested that he either did not want to get well or that nothing was wrong and he therefore did not want to complicate things by taking medication.
He became ill again as the next court appearance neared. One day before his family reported that he had suffered a cardiac arrest and had to be resuscitated. I now know that a secretary in his employ presented herself to the Caribbean Heart Institute for a letter to suggest that he was ill and needed treatment overseas.
I have also learnt that the doctors indicated that they needed to see him before any such letter was issued. At the time he remained in the vehicle in the compound, a few steps from the institute. Given the refusal, the doctor suggested that Mr. Sharma see Dr. Haydock Wilson. He did this, I am told, but again no letter was proffered.
To make a long story short, Mr Sharma went to Dr Balwant Singh’s medical facility and from there he travelled to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport by ambulance. He was on his way to Trinidad having been cleared to travel by the courts. He was to check in to St Clair Hospital (1-868-628-1451) where he would have been under the supervision of Dr Hughley Hanoman, a Guyanese now resident in Trinidad.
Word out of Trinidad is that Mr. Sharma never checked into the hospital, choosing instead to do so at a hotel. There are reports that he is now in Canada. There have been two other court hearings and he has been absent from both because of his ailment.
I took an interest in this matter because if I were the accused I would have been languishing in jail. The society would have crucified me for being a wicked person presenting myself as someone respectable. To this day there would have been the media reports and the talk about the place.
On Friday, I happened to ask President Bharrat Jagdeo about this episode and he reminded of something that the entire country knows. When someone has money that individual can buy certain rights and freedoms. Anything can be had for a price. Mr. Sharma has money, tons of it.
There is now talk that this is not Mr. Sharma’s first escape into pedophilia, that there were at least three others, one of which went to court but was dismissed for want of prosecution.
I am no angel. I am attracted to sex like any healthy man but I cannot ever be attracted to a child. I was allowed to grow normally. There was no one to make sexual advances to me or make efforts to abuse me. I did not have to be scared to be around people. In fact, older people had my best interest at heart. I raised my own children in the same vein. There are things that I know about sex that a child should not know. I remember covering a rape in the southern part of the city. One of the victims was no more than eleven years old. I saw that child shivering in the chair when I went to interview the family. I could imagine her pain and discomfort during the episode. I am certain that she would be scarred for life. Adults have been known to be scarred after a rape.
So heinous is this act of pedophilia that hardened criminals have been known to kill those convicted of the act once they get behind prison walls. These hardened criminals had children of their own.
In the case of Mr. Sharma, an aunt of the victim spoke of being offered $10 million to settle the matter. That is an awful lot of money and might have been accepted had the authorities not got hold of the victim and her sisters. They are another story.
I suppose that Mr. Sharma would return to Guyana some time in the future. I also know that the matter would not be struck off the books so his trial will await him. I know that he cannot live like a fugitive in Canada. I also know that if he applies for refugee status he is unlikely to succeed because the Canadians are aware of the situation in Guyana.
There is a saying that a man can run but he cannot hide. I say, if I have done no wrong then I must stand up and clear my name. The moment I run I am suggesting that something is not right. Mr. Sharma is sending that same signal.

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