Former Consul General to New York, Rondy “Luta” McIntosh, has firmly rejected claims by Minister of Foreign Affairs Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble that the computer systems at the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Consulate in New York were “completely wiped” at the end of his tenure.
In a detailed statement released this week, McIntosh called the allegations “completely false” and said they create a damaging impression of misconduct that he rejects entirely.
Minister Bramble told Parliament on April 21 that the new Consul General, Roland “Patel” Matthews, reported finding no information left on the consulate’s computers upon taking office in March, describing the situation as one of several “unfavourable realities” inherited by the new administration.
But McIntosh says the official record tells a different story. He pointed to a 17-page handover memorandum, a virtual handover meeting on February 27, and an in-person handover on March 3 attended by the incoming Consul General and supervised by the Ambassador to the United States. A signed handing-over certificate, he noted, is on record in the Embassy report.
According to McIntosh, the Ambassador’s official report concluded that he “willingly and graciously complied in every respect with the instructions for handing-over” and ensured all property, records, and pending matters were properly transferred.
“At no time did I ‘wipe’ any computer systems,” McIntosh stated, adding that the only files he removed were personal — standard practice at the end of any diplomatic assignment. He noted that on March 3, all consulate staff were actively working on their computers, and he personally assisted the incoming Consul General at the workstation in his former office.
McIntosh expressed concern that the allegations surfaced nearly two months after his last interaction with the consulate, and that no one from the Government or Ministry contacted him for clarification before the claims were made publicly.
He also pointed out that consular work is largely paper-based, that the Ministry in Kingstown retains copies of all official records, and that the Consulate is subject to periodic independent audits — making it impossible, he said, for any single departure to deprive the Government of essential information.
“I served as Consul General with dedication and integrity,” McIntosh said. “I cannot and will not allow my professional reputation to be undermined by statements that are demonstrably untrue.”
He has called for prompt and unequivocal correction, indicating he reserves the right to take further steps to protect his name if the statements are not retracted.