Former Prime Minister P.J. Patterson wants the Government to find and expose the source of erroneous information that led to controversy surrounding his recent return to the island from Cuba.
Patterson's comments come on the heels of a police report, the contents of which were made public by the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday, that rubbished claims being circulated in the media that the former statesman was travelling with Cuban diplomats who had wads of cash in a diplomatic pouch.
"The Government has made it clear that no incident took place and, in fact, no incident did take place," Patterson told The Gleaner yesterday.
"And, the Government has said it is pursuing investigations to find out how these allegations came to be circulated and I hope that they will be successful in finding out the source."
He added: "They (the Govern-ment) said they would be taking legal advice as to whether public mischief has been created or any disciplinary action is necessary and I, as a person, am watching that with great interest."
Patterson angered
Patterson admitted he was angered by the unfolding saga which began with reports of a search of a private aircraft at the Norman Manley Interna-tional Airport.
"Wouldn't you be? Well, you think I'm any different from any human being when they are subject to such an egregious wrong?"
Meanwhile, pending a report from the police, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is to determine whether criminal or disciplinary proceedings should be brought to bear on the source of the misinformation.
At the same time, Daryl Vaz, minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) with responsibility for information and telecommunications, does not believe that anyone will be charged.
Urgent treatment
"I think it is more a matter of whether or not persons are identified which, based on the circumstances, is probably not likely," said Vaz during yesterday's post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House.
In noting that the matter would be treated with urgency, Vaz said: "Any issue like this that involves a former prime minister and also major investors in Jamaica obviously (is) to be taken seriously."
tyrone.reid@gleanerjm.com