Walcott's former rival withdraws over smear campaign

So yes we was rheelllll (in emphatic Trini style) surprised to hear that British poet Ruth  Padel who was Derek Walcott's main rival for the poetry professor post at Oxford has resigned from the post after... shock! being linked to the smear campaign against him.

[caption id="attachment_1020" align="alignleft" width="185" caption="...all I thinking is "ee salope!""][/caption]

Just nine days after being elected to the position, Padel stepped down on Monday after news came out that she had emailed journalists about the past allegations against Walcott.

The London Evening Standard printed the letter today, noting that even though one of their journalists received it two weeks before the smear campaign became public, they "did not wish to have any part in a smear campaign against the St Lucia born poet."

The letter, which ironically enough for a would-be literary don was filled with spelling errors, reads:

“Hi Olivia,

On the chair, there is still no other nomination except (so extraordinarily) Derek W and me. But thye close on 29th April so another or others may well turnup…

“There is aupposed to be a book called The Lecherous Professor, which has 6 pages on Derek Walcott's two cases of sexual harassment, which might provide interestigfn copy on what Oxford wants from its professors.. ALl best, Ruth.”

Of course, Padel is trying to take some of de shame off she face by claiming that the two letters she wrote to journalists were isolated and not part of a larger campaign.

At the Guardian Hay literary festival, Padel gave a press conference, saying:

"It was naive and silly of me – a bad error of judgement. I can of course see that people can misconstrue these two isolated emails of mine as part of a larger campaign I had nothing to do with." 

 She feels people will think her emails were part of the larger campaign... FUH TRUTE? YUH LIE! Where would people get that idea?

But de bold-facedness don't stop there. Padel said she was "trying in a misguided way to address student concerns" and that she "genuinely believe that I did nothing intentional that led to Derek Walcott's withdrawal from the election."

Well, well, well ... what a commess!