Staff Writer
KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent, Apr 26, CMC -A former diplomat, Rondy “Luta” McIntosh, is threatening legal action after describing as “untrue” allegations that he played a role in having computers at the St. Vincent and the Grenadines’ New York consulate “completely wiped” after last November’s general election.
Foreign Affairs Minister, Dwight Fitzgerald Bramble, has promised a full investigation into the situation as well as the difficulties being encountered in taking control of a children’s trust fund linked to the country’s High Commission in London.
Bramble told Parliament last week that Roland “Patel” Matthews, who was appointed consul general in March, following the New Democratic Party’s (NDP) victory in last November general election that ended nearly 25 years of the Unity Labour Party’s (ULP) tenure in office, had reported to him shortly after arriving in the United States to take up the post, that the entire computer system at the consulate had been wiped.
“Completely wiped. No information on anything that happened in the consulate in New York was left there,” Bramble told Parliament.
Speaking on a radio programme later, Bramble promised public accountability, saying “I will do whatever I have to do to let people know what’s going on and to show people that I am accountable as their servant.”
Regarding Matthews’ report, Bramble said, “he told me that nothing is on the computer when he got there. So we are investigating. We are exploring all of our options”.
But in a 21 minute video statement posted on his Facebook page, McIntosh said while he would have preferred being outdoors, going to the beach, or even going to the nearby Grenadines, he must instead “address a matter that has gone viral in the public sphere.
He said he has followed with “deep concern and profound disappointment” the statements made by Bramble both in Parliament and on a local radio station.
“I am compelled to respond, not out of bitterness, not out of partisan politics, but because these statements are factually wrong. They are deeply unfair, and they strike at the heart of my professional reputation and personal integrity, a reputation that I spent years in service to my country building, and one I am not prepared to surrender without the truth being told.
“The record must be set straight, and I intend to set it straight now,” McIntosh said, adding that the allegations that “I wiped the Consulate’s computer system is completely false. Full stop”.
“I will not allow these false and irresponsible statements to go unchallenged. I reserve all rights, and I reserve all rights available to me to protect my reputation and to seek appropriate redress.
“While the minister’s statements to the parliament are protected by privilege, his reiteration of those statements on the radio is not. I call on the minister to correct the records publicly in the same forums where the damage was done.
“The truth is not complicated; it is documented, and the truth will stand. I want to say to all those concerned, I have seen many postings on social media, I’ve seen those who came to my defence, those in the diaspora that is now split, a diaspora that we work so hard to unite and bring together is now split over these erroneous claims.
“I want to assure you, without a shadow of any doubt, that anyone can dig to the pit of hell, they will not uncover anything that speaks to any corruption at the consulate, not from me, not from the staff that I left there at the consulate, and you will hear more from me about this matter.”
McIntosh said that on March 3, the final day he was physically present at the Consulate, every member of staff was at work, all working on their computers, and that the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Ambassador to the United States, Lou-Anne Gaylene Gilchrist, “ was present with us for the entire in-person handover.
“She observed the staff at their She observed me personally assisting the incoming Consul General, Mr. Roland Matthews, on the Consul General’s computer. Everything was functioning. Nothing was wiped.
“What I did do, as a reasonable person would upon leaving a position, was remove my personal files from the computer I used. I cleaned up email clutter from the email address passed on to the new Consul General. Personal correspondence, private documents, family matters, items that were mine and mine alone.
“That is not wiping a computer. That is basic and entirely proper conduct. I would also note for the record that my official Consular email account, rmackintosh at svgconsulatenewyork.org, was active on the last day I went to the Consulate but was disabled or deleted by someone thereafter, not by me.
“If any files associated with that email account are now inaccessible, that is a matter that must be taken up with the person who disabled or deleted my Consular email address, not with me,” McIntosh said, adding that the suggestion that “I was anything less than fully cooperative in the transition process is an insult to the facts.
“Facts that are in writing, on record, and signed,” he said, recalling that in January, when he was first asked whether he would be willing to speak with the incoming Consul General to begin the transition, he agreed “without hesitation.
“From that moment, I went above and beyond what was required of me. I prepared a comprehensive 17-page handover booklet shared in advance with Mr. Matthews and Her Excellency the Ambassador, covering every aspect of the Consulate’s operations, banking arrangements, account balances, passwords and access codes for all systems and devices, monthly expenses, key contacts, Consular procedures, staffing, outstanding matters, and strategic guidance for the road ahead.
“Nothing was hidden, nothing was held back. The handover unfolded in two formal phases, both overseen by Ambassador Gilchrist. Phase 1 was a detailed virtual meeting on February 27, 2026,” McIntosh said, recalling that his tenure ended at the Consulate on February 28.
He said the day before, a Friday, was the last working day in that month, and that there was a terrible snowstorm in New York, in Washington, and we were unable to go to the Consulate. “Our Ambassador was unable to come from Washington to the Consulate to do the physical handover, hence the reason why a virtual handover via Zoom was done on that day. Phase 2 was an in-person handover at the Consulate on March 3, 2026”.
McInrosh said that when the ambassador came from Washington and visited the Consulate staff and conducted a thorough verification of all financial instruments, checkbooks, receipt books, money orders, and cash, with a second verification conducted in the presence of both Consuls General for transparency and accountability.
He said a formal handover certificate required under Section 2231 of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Finance Regulation of 2009 was signed by both Mr. Matthews and me on March 3, 2026.
“It must be noted that on that date, March 3, while we did the physical handover at the Consulate, at no point did I leave the Consulate without my Ambassador and Consul General Matthews,” McIntosh said, adding that Ambassador Gilchrist “subsequently reported to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that I, Randy Luther McIntosh, willingly and graciously complied in every respect with the handover instructions and that the entire process was conducted decently with all parties demonstrating due respect for one another and for the process at every stage”.
CMC/pr/nb/2026