Latest update August 24th, 2026 10:25 AM
Latest News
- Grief, protests, and a G$1.4B abandoned wharf
- ‘Guyana is the place to be, world class mining area’ – new Australian gold firm
- Exxon shuts down operations on Liza Unity after small fire in laundry room
- ‘I know he’s dead’ – mother accepts loss of missing MV Barima crewman
- Chinese Landing residents hold firm in Tassawini standoff
hits
Blunt of the day
Sports
Kaieteur Sports – Newly imported horse from the Jumbo Jet Racing Stables, Sand Pipes stormed to a comprehensive victory in the prestigious Guyana Cup horse race at Rising Sun Turf Club on a cool...
Features/Columnists
(Kaieteur News) – Guyana never ceases to amaze me. There are moments when a government announces an achievement and it is done in such a manner that one is expected to feel grateful for the evidence of progress. Some of these announcements are about routine things. Yet, the announcement is made...
Sir. Ronald Sanders
By Sir Ronald Sanders (Kaieteur News) – I have been an advocate of the Caribbean Court of Justice from its conception. In 2015, on the Court’s tenth anniversary, I described its creation as arguably the most significant institutional achievement of the English-speaking Caribbean since the...
The GHK Lall Column
(Kaieteur News) – Those visits by Pres. Ali into places of worship may be paying off. He sees the light. He may insist that he sees god (meaning himself); I settle for light. Light is late in coming. Its speed slowed down by GPL wires and thick political darkness. But light has arrived...
Weekend Cartoon
The burden of proof is on the accuser
Jul 11, 2026 Front Page Comment, Letters
Dear Editor,
What I find most interesting in the recent public discourse in Guyana is that some have not paid attention to or frankly may have chosen not to notice the irony that should not be overlooked.
Those who most forcefully accuse others of corruption without first presenting verifiable facts and evidence should themselves recognize that the principles of accountability and due process apply equally to every public official and political leader, irrespective of office or party affiliation.
A democracy cannot credibly demand one evidentiary standard for political opponents while embracing a different and lower standard for oneself. Where a public figure has been the subject of official sanctions, investigations, or legal actions by competent authorities, whether domestic or international, those matters, like all others, should be assessed on the basis of official records, admissible evidence, and the rule of law, rather than selective political narratives. Consistency is indispensable to the credibility of democratic leadership. One cannot insist that allegations alone should condemn a political adversary while simultaneously arguing that due process and evidentiary standards should apply in one’s own circumstances.
The rule of law is not a partisan instrument; it is a constitutional principle that must be applied uniformly. That is precisely why every allegation, against every individual, must ultimately stand or fall on the strength of the facts and evidence presented before the appropriate legal institutions, and not on the volume of political rhetoric or the passions of the moment.
The burden of proof is on the accuser, whoever makes a claim must provide sufficient evidence to support it.The defending party is presumed innocent or in the right until that burden is met
Yours respectfully,
Jermaine Figueira
Former Member of Parliament
Share this:
Discover more from Kaieteur News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Similar Articles