London, DeFreitas write letters of apology to PM Gonsalves

The host of the “Night Nurse” programme on Nice Radio has written to Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves in what she says is the “spirit of reconciliation.”

Margaret Yvonne London, in a letter to Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves, dated November 11, 2014, said even though she was not asked “formally or officially for an apology” {{more}}she agreed to write to him in relation to comments she made on Nice Radio on October 29.

London said the manager of Nice Radio spoke to her on October 29 in relation to her comments about a publication in WikiLeaks.

“I never intended to implicate you in any of this, in that regard, I am one who stands on principle and reiterate — it is not my intent to defame anyone, be it the Prime Minister, Mr [Berisford] Phillips or anyone else. When I made the alleged comments, I was only questioning why WikiLeaks was not sued for such a publication. I did it in a rather exploratory manner rather than an accusatory one. Heaven knows that it is within that context. I wasn’t categorically stating that what WikiLeaks said is true; it was because I considered what I read in the document to be false why I questioned its contents…

“I am mature, however, to say sorry for causing harm to anyone and so I personally, take this opportunity to apologize fully to you and your family for any distress caused by the alleged comments,” London wrote.

Meanwhile, Douglas DeFreitas, manager of Nice Radio, in a letter to the Prime Minister, dated November 8, apologized for “the incident with Margaret London.”

He said when he heard of the incident, he “immediately challenged Margaret on the issue.”

“Again, I reiterate that while I am no supporter of you politically, I will not [pursue] anyone to seek and destroy for the purpose of politics….”

DeFreitas said he has also been critical of former prime ministers, including Arnhim Eustace.

“I have marched against the NDP. That’s because I believe in critical support. Failing to do so is a failure of democracy.

“I therefore request of you not to take any legal action against Nice Radio. I have also instructed Margaret to apologize on radio and in writing to you for that broadcast. I will take every step necessary to ensure that this type of incident will not happen again,” DeFreitas wrote.