ST. GEORGE’S, GRENADA: STINGING allegations of corruption at the highest level of the government here have been met with strong denials and threats of legal action. The latest allegations, regarded as the most serious yet of an administration that has been continuously plagued by unproven claims of corruption, are reported to be creating unease in the government of Prime Minister Dr Keith Mitchell, and a stir on the streets of Grenada. The latest furore comes out of an April 30 story carried in an offshore alert publication called KYC NEWS based in Miami. The article was authored by David Marchant, a man who has made his name unveiling offshore scams, corruption and international rip-offs from Bermuda to the Cayman Islands. The Grenada government says it will sue Marchant, who has had a 100 percent success rate in defending himself in court, for the publication of the story which among other things effectively accused top officials of bribery. The New National Party administration issued a statement Monday defending its relations with controversial German Eric E Resteiner, who for two years was a Trade Counsellor for Grenada in Europe. Resteiner who was appointed in 1999 had his appointment revoked two years later after he got into legal troubles. The government is denying that anything was wrong with the relations it had with Resteiner, claiming that an all expenses paid oversees trip to Europe and the Middle East by the Prime Minister was a normal thing such representatives do in the execution of their duties. “In 2000, as Trade Counsellor, Dr. Resteiner offered to cover the expenses for a trip by the Prime Minister to travel to several countries in Europe, as part of a promotional and investment tour to France, Austria, Leichtenstein and Switzerland, as well as Kuwait. The matter was considered by Cabinet. Cabinet agreed that the offer should be accepted,” the government statement explained. “Dr. Resteiner provided the Government’s delegation with the necessary financial support to cover the expenses of the promotional visit. The method by which this offer was provided, deliberated upon and transacted was transparent, as Trade Counsellors, Ambassadors at Large and similar representatives of Grenada often provide Government with financial support to assist in travel and investment promotion abroad, as well as certain economic, social and other activities in Grenada,” it further stated. While the government claims all the transactions were above board and with the knowledge and approval of the cabinet, the KYC News report questioned the receipt of money and how funds were handled among other charges. The official statement said “the Government of Grenada” will take legal action against the Miami-based KYC News which claimed government officials might have received kickbacks to appoint Reistener ambassador in the first place, something the government said was just not true. The accusations have received very limited coverage in the local media. Media sources say some of the leading and most influential media operations have also been threatened with legal action by government officials if they give the issue any extended coverage. Comments on the issue at a press conference by opposition lawmakers were also not played, apparently out of fear of the threat. The Mitchell administration has been dogged by accusations of corruption throughout its 10 years in office, and analysts here think it was one of the major reasons for the erosion of support that was seen in last year’s elections. After an overwhelming 15-0 parliamentary victory in 1999, the ruling NNP narrowly hung on to power with a one seat win last year. While none of the corruption accusations against the government has ever been proven, some think the latest could be the most serious and damaging yet. The offshore alert organization which broke the information is claiming to have hard evidence, which we have not seen, that can prove the story. A defiant David Marchant spoke to CARIBUPDATE late Monday and said he is not losing any sleep over any threats of legal action. “My company has been sued four times for libel since it was formed in 1996; three of those actions have ended, we won all of them. Eleven officers from three plaintiffs were arrested, convicted or indicted for fraud or money laundering from November of 2003 to January of 2004 alone,” Marchant said. “The fourth action was recently filed and we will fight that and win it too.” “Everyone who exposes us has already been proven or will be proved to be crooked, and if Mr Mitchell want to take me on he has zero idea who he is dealing with, and I will defeat him, just like I defeat every ……. who challenges me,” Marchant declared. Marchant website has published what he calls a "Hall of Shame" -- a list of what it calls "dubious businessmen and regulators." Of the seven people listed from around the world, two are Grenadians, and another is the American fugitive Van Brink, who operated the spectacularly failed First Bank International in Grenada. “My job as a journalist is to distribute information fairly, accurately, independently and responsibly and I am very comfortable that I have done that in this instance,” he said. “I have reported a lot about Grenada in the past particularly its offshore financial sector and it was clear that there was massive corruption in Grenada,” he said in talking about the collapse of the First International Bank. “….The end result of which was that hundreds if not thousands of non-Grenadians were defrauded out of hundreds of millions of dollars, if not collectively more than a billion dollars,” he said. “And it was clear that there was corruption at the highest levels of the government of Grenada.” SOURCE: CARIBUPDATE.COM