Jagdeo roasts Freddie Kissoon over his remarks about Cuban trained Guyanese doctors

– says ‘Freddie Kissoon is an abysmal failure in many respects, not least in his academic pursuits; thus his unending diatribe against persons who have achieved what he has coveted…’

Opposition Leader Dr Bharrat Jagdeo, through his office, has issued a scathing response to controversial Kaieteur News’ columnist Freddie Kissoon over his November 18  column under the caption, “Guyanese messengers of death from Cuba have returned.”

In the said column, Kissoon wrote – among several other things, that “many of the Cuban-trained Guyanese doctors are hopelessly incompetent. They have killed countless of poor patients at the Georgetown Public Hospital, (the middle classes and wealthy folks do not even drive past the Georgetown Public Hospital, do not even visit it much less to become patients there), the West Demerara Hospital, New Amsterdam Hospital among others.”

Published below is the FULL text of the response issued by Dr Jagdeo’s office on Friday:

Freddie Kissoon is an abysmal failure in many respects, not least in his academic pursuits; so his unending diatribe against persons who have achieved what he has coveted, and pretended that he has, until he was exposed as a liar and pretender – a doctorate, are vicious and relentless. However, his slanderous fulminations printed daily in Guyana’s only tabloid – the Kaieteur News, has reached its zenith in today’s (November 18, 2016) edition.

Freddie Kissoon has simultaneously accused the Cuban Government of fraud perpetrated on the countries to which it offers medical scholarships, and sweepingly accused the doctors that are/were recipients of that scholarship programme of being murderers, or potential murderers.

The Office of the Leader of the Opposition has rarely responded to any of Kissoon’s lamentably illogical and spurious defamatory and inflammatory fulminations, which seem to emanate out of a mind that has long since lost any reason. However, this latest harangue against defenceless persons who have no means of protecting themselves from his defamatory accusations has hit a level so low even a person with the mind of a book thief and a pretender to intellectual achievements he has not earned should be ashamed.

After 30 years as a lecturer at a university, Kissoon has never produced even one peer-reviewed publication, although he claims he has; but this has been disproved. There are many grounds for Kissoon to be charged with fraud and this is one instance. Kissoon should have lost tenure for his lack of scholarship. Any other university would have relieved him of his position after a maximum of two years.

This self-proclaimed advocate of anti-corruption (sic!) acquires things through blackmailing vulnerable persons. Notwithstanding whatever he writes may be lies, or misrepresentations of the truth, the business community is always fearful of attracting the ire of Kissoon’s poisonous pen because the dirt from the scurrilous things he writes often destroys the credibility and casts doubt on the integrity of business houses, as well as the credibility and reputation of innocent persons.

With his vile and irrational ramblings in the Kaieteur News, Kissoon has denounced a nation that has, despite its own internal problems, generously provided other third-world countries the wherewithal to develop a strong personnel corps for their health sectors; and disparaged and consequently demotivated the entire corps of doctors that came with all their bright optimism to serve their country and their countrymen.

If one examines the history of Kissoon’s writings one can easily discern the rank opportunism that catalyzes the vile attacks on innocent and defenceless victims, because Kissoon changes positions as he changes loyalties; and/or for personal benefits or vainglorious pursuits.

There are real achievers and intellectuals who focus on positivity and on optimizing their capacity for greatness; and then there are the naysayers and doomsayers who snipe and carp at those greater than themselves, whom they cannot aspire to emulate. Kissoon is of the latter breed whose tirades against anyone who has achieved a greater status than his (which is almost 100% of the population) are signs of a rapidly-deteriorating mind.

The Office of the Leader of the Opposition denounces Kissoon’s depraved onslaught against the approximately 800 doctors who have pursued their studies with diligence and have now returned with a commitment to serve their country. Correspondingly, The Office of the Leader of the Opposition urges our young doctors not to be demoralized by Freddie Kissoon’s inane ramblings but to pursue your profession conscientiously and serve the people with the assiduousness with which you pursued your studies.

The Office of the Leader of the Opposition expresses great appreciation for the many successful co-operative partnerships it has enjoyed – in and out of Government, with Cuba and other nations.

The Party calls on Kaieteur News to issue forthwith an apology to Cuba and to the doctors who have been slandered in the basest, most reprehensible and slanderous manner by Kissoon.