The Home Affairs Minister should not be made a sacrificial lamb for the ruling party, he is a mere creature of the PPP and had permission to do what he did, Ravi Dev said.

"You cannot cough in the PPP if you don't have permission to cough," the ROAR leader declared while addressing a sizeable crowd at the People's Movement for Justice (PMJ) Rule of Law rally on Saturday last at the Square of the Revolution.

There are shepherds and a shepherdess [in the party], Dev said, drawing a thunderous applause from the crowd, adding that Ronald Gajraj should recuse himself from office.

Dev who was absent from the first rally over a month ago said that if Gajraj did not have the decency to step down there was little people could do.

He rejected the commission set up by President Jagdeo, and said that the government was aware of what the main opposition party wanted before the commission was named. He said that it was a matter of public record that the Western diplomatic community, donor community and others had concerns about the commission.

He charged the public not to label Gajraj guilty, but instead let the proper procedure apply which says that a man is innocent until proven guilty. Dev added that the PPP often spoke of trust, but none could be found in the bosom of the commission.

The ROAR leader called for national reconciliation in the country but asserted that this was only the beginning, adding that lives could not be taken with impunity.

Speaking at the rally on the eighth death anniversary of Jermaine Wilkinson of Albouystown (May 22), Heston Boswick said that the question of justice remained unanswered.

The Justice for Jermaine Committee member lashed out at those in authority during his address and said that the ruling party had a system which omitted justice. He said that over the past eight years mass demonstrations, protests and vigils had been held within the ambit of the law, but the question of justice lingered.

Boswick said that an attempt was being made to throw dust in the public's eye with the new commission.

Desmond Trotman of the PMJ said the body made no apology for rejecting the commission since government had failed to consult opposition parties and the stakeholders involved before naming it. This he said was opposite to what the PMJ had requested after its formation four months ago - an impartial inquiry that met acceptable standards.

He said that the PMJ demanded a commission of eminent persons with acceptable terms of reference, adding that they would keep up the pressure until the deserved commission was named and Gajraj stepped down. Trotman said further that the struggle would continue until victory was won.

Norris Witter of the Guyana Trades Union Congress voiced his concerns at the rally and remarked that the country was struggling politically and economically while several areas of production were suffering. He said that the President had named a disabled commission which could not be accepted.

Tacuma Ogunseye briefly addressed the gathering on behalf of the African Cultural and Development Association (ACDA) and remarked that the commission was an insult to the nation. `A Jagdeo fan club,' was how Ogunseye described it, and called for the "disrespect" to end.