Lovell: ‘The government and its henchmen will lose’

The man positioned to lead the opposition United Progressive Party (UPP) into the next general elections says the appeal against the recent dismissal of the bus probe case against him and two colleagues is nothing but the government’s continued “political persecution” of opposition members.
Harold Lovell, the UPP political leader, also said he is however “confident that the result before the Court of Appeal would be the same result as the magistrate’s and the government and their henchmen will lose”.
The appeal was filed last week by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Anthony Armstrong and made public in a statement from the Ministry of Legal Affairs. When asked if he’s suggesting the DPP is engaging in “political persecution” and acting on government’s instruction, Lovell said, “I have said what I had to say and the government and [its] henchmen will lose.”
Lovell and his colleagues — MP Wilmoth Daniel and former MP Dr Jacqui Quinn — are accused of corruption, larceny and the criminal conversion of three Daewoo buses donated by the South Korean government during their tenure under the UPP administration.
It is alleged they registered the buses, valued over $600,000, into their own names while in public office.
On March 28 this year, Magistrate Conliffe Clarke dismissed the case, saying, “the evidence was scant to say the least” as he further indicated that there was no evidence of criminal intent.
 
(More in today’s Daily Observer)