KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent – Opposition Leader Arnhim Eustace announced on Monday that he has told his lawyers to bring legal action against Glen Beache, CEO of the Tourism Authority.
The legal action is in relation to comments attributed to Beache, published in last Friday’s The News newspaper.
In the article, Beache explained that he made a mistake when he said that EC$75,000 and not EC$40,000 was paid for the “Beast Let Go” video.
The difference in the figures has triggered much public discussions and questions in the nation’s Parliament.
Beache, a former tourism minister, said that while persons are calling him corrupt, his actions show that he is above board.
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The News quoted Beache as saying that Eustace was prime minister and minister of finance, his New Democratic Party (NDP) government rented space in Eustace’s building.
“So, I am corrupt cause I rented space to government,” Eustace said on the NDP’s New Times programme on Nice Radio.
“And he (Beache) said when I was prime minister and minister of finance I did that and went on to say in November the Tourism Authority ran out of space and from then until the present they are using space in his family building, free of cost,” Eustace continued.
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“So, I am corrupt. That is how I interpreted that. But you know, Mr. Lynch, that is very untrue. It is the ULP [Unity Labour Party] government that rented the building on the 16th of June 2002 — 15 months after I was no longer prime minister,” explained Eustace, whose NDP lost the March 2001 general elections.
“It was the permanent secretary in the Ministry of Health who wrote to my brother asking him to rent space for a year and maybe for a few months beyond the year if it becomes necessary,” Eustace further said.
“Well, I have instructed my lawyers to bring legal action against Mr. Beache. I instructed them to do so on the weekend. That is all I have to say about that for the time being,” Eustace added.