Army Chief refutes Izum’s allegations -Claims tainted with falsehood
By Stanford Conway
Editor-in-Chief- SKNVibes.com
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| Commander of the SKNDF Lt Col Patrick Wallace |
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – COMMANDER of the St. Kitts and Nevis Defence Force [SKNDF] Lieutenant Colonel [Lt Col] Patrick Wallace claims that some of the statements made by Collin ‘Izum’ Matthew against the Coast Guard are false.
The Army’s Top Brass told SKNVibes Saturday that Matthew was not the first to have reported the capsizing of the ill-fated FV LADY SEA in the Atlantic Ocean in which the two missing men, Keita Williams and Kasim Dula Maynard of Newtown Project, were with him, but their friends in Nevis.
“Matthew was not the first person to report the February 19 incident of the fishing vessel and the missing two men from Newtown. It was friends of the men residing on Nevis that called the Coast Guard Base informing of the incident; and Matthew’s report was made more than an hour after that.
“On receipt of the information the Coast Guard already had a vessel out at sea on patrol, and another one was immediately sent out with a rescue team, and that was before Matthew’s arrival at the Base,” Wallace said.
He also declared investigations revealed that Matthew had gone to his home before reporting to the Coast Guard Base and that members of the Coast Guard are humane and would have provided him with warm bedding or clothing if he were wet and shivering from the cold as he alleged.
“We, the members, of the Defence Force and the Coast Guard are not beasts. We are the protectors of the borders and the integrity
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Public Affairs Officer of the SKNDF Lt Kayode Sutton
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of this Federation and all of its inhabitants. No member would see an individual coming out of a situation as Matthew claims and do not provide him with the needed comfort. He was not visibly wet and, if he says different, he’s blatantly lying,” Wallace stressed.
The Army Chief further stated that a diving party from the Coast Guard had gone in search of the missing men and he has no recollection or record of Matthew offering his services to join the crew.
“Our divers went in search of the two missing men and there is no record of Matthew’s so-called offer to join them. This is also another of his false statements and it can be substantiated by the officer who was in charge of the operation,” Wallace added.
Lt Col Wallace’s statements were corroborated by the Public Affairs Officer of the SKNDF, Lieutenant Kayode Sutton, who vehemently defended the Coast Guard.
~~Adz:Left~~ “As the Public Affairs Officer of the Force, I am responsible for the dissemination of information to the press and the general public. When the incident occurred, SKNVibes was the first media house to have made contact with me, followed by WINN FM, and I did disclose all the information we have had at that time concerning the incident.
“It is sad to know that Matthew had made those allegations, which are all untrue. The Defence Force is a corps of venerable men and women, who have and will continue to put their lives on the line in defence of their country and service to all in the twin-island Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis. But we will take umbrage to anyone who tries to sully our immaculate image,” Sutton said.
Sutton stated that after Matthew’s initial report of the incident to the Coast Guard Base, he was not seen or heard from again until the day he reported to the Basseterre Police Station.
Sutton also stated that the Security Forces are concerned over the issue of the missing men and would like to express their sympathy to the parents and relatives. He however pointed out that statements emerging from some quarters labeled the Coast Guard as not doing enough in its search for them, and also that the Security Forces view the incident as one with ulterior motives.
“We understand how the parents and relatives of the missing men feel; we feel their pain and offer our sympathy, but we have not given up the search for them or have we conclusively expressed disbelief in their motive for going out to sea on the day in question.
“As protectors of the land, we do not prejudge and we do not discriminate. Even if someone has a long list of convictions, goes missing and we have been given the task of finding him or her, we will do so to the best of our ability as professionals and leave whatever findings, especially in a criminal matter, to the police,” Sutton said.
He stressed that the Coast Guard has not abandoned its search for Keita Williams and Kasim Dula Maynard, noting every time a patrol goes out its members are on the lookout and constant reminders are sent to neighbouring islands informing them of the situation as it were.
