PRESIDENT Paula Mae Weekes has broken her silence on the fiasco involving former police commissioner Gary Griffith and the now defunct Police Service Commissioner (PSC) led by its former chairman, Bliss Seepersad.
In a statement published in the three daily newspapers on Sunday, the President said she was not going to address the question of who came to the Office of the President (OTP) despite calls for her to do so by Leader of the Opposition Kamla Persad-Bissessar and two senior attorneys, Senior Counsel Martin Daly and Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj.
The three wanted answers from the President.
The Opposition has since filed a motion in Parliament seeking to have the House of Representatives investigate and potentially remove the President over imbroglio.
Daly on Sunday said he was the first to call for full disclosure of who or what was involved in the incident at President’s House on August 12, when Seepersad went to President’s House to deliver the merit list. He then called on the President to account for what happened at President’s House on August 12, “and I maintained the position that giving such an account was the right thing to do.”
“Naturally I am pleased that Her Excellency has accepted the responsibility to give the account called for, and I thank her for giving it.”
He said after spending the day “giving careful consideration and reflection on the contents of the account that has been given,” further commentary will be forthcoming.
Daly said he also believes the President’s explanation revealed the Constitution was breached.
He also said it was not open to her, once the merit list was delivered, to participate or acquiesce in the withdrawal of it. Maharaj could not be reached for comment.
In her statement, Weekes insisted, “I assure the nation that neither the OTP nor I participated in, allowed or encouraged any attempted or actual improper interference, influence or breach of the principle of separation of powers in the operation of the PSC in the matter of the Commissioner of Police.
“I did not receive instructions or suggestions from any individual, nor did I give any to the PSC. I certainly did not wilfully violate any provision of the Constitution nor have I behaved in a way that could lead one reasonably to conclude that I have brought the OTP into hatred, ridicule or contempt or endangered the security of the State.”
The President confirmed the merit list reached her office on August 11, but said it was rescinded hours later. She said this meant she could not submit the list to Parliament for consideration.
“The OTP has been advised that ‘the recruitment and selection process for the Office of Commissioner of Police has not yet been completed.’”
[caption id="attachment_919556" align="alignnone" width="648"] Senior Counsel Martin Daly -[/caption]
The President said while all service commissions were appointed by the OTP, they are “independent even of the President who does not direct, partici
