Opposition MP Dinesh Rambally believes Energy Minister Stuart Young and Labour Minister Stephen McClashie should submit statements to and testify at the Commission of Enquiry (CoE) into the February 25 Paria diving tragedy.
He said this at a press conference in Port of Spain on Wednesday morning.
Kazim Ali Jr, Fyzal Kurban, Yusuf Henry, Rishi Nagassar and Christopher Boodram were doing maintenance on a 30-inch pipeline at Berth 6, belonging to Paria Fuel Trading Co Ltd, Pointe-a-Pierre, but were sucked into the pipeline. Only Boodram survived.
Many have testified thus far at the CoE, which resumes on January 4 at 10 am, including Boodram and officials from Paria and LMCS.
Rambally said he is "very confident in his thinking" that most people in this country believe the divers could have been saved – himself included.
He said so far at the CoE, he has heard excuses from "all who were involved," but was not going to make "pronouncements as to whether people were criminally negligent."
He said Pointe-a-Pierre MP David Lee was "the first on the ground" when the incident happened and was trying to assist divers and their families.
He then said there are line ministers for both energy and labour, asking, "Why have we not heard yet and when are we going to hear from minister Young and Minister McClashie?
"I would have thought that they would have made a submission before the CoE."
He said the country needs to know what role the two played in this matter, saying they had both a legal duty and a "public official duty" to the divers.
"Where are the submissions from the Minister of Labour and the Minister of Energy? When are they going to give their evidence?"
Young visited the site of the tragedy on February 26 where he was involved in meetings and also spoke to the families of the divers.
Asked for feedback on Rambally's comments, Young told Newsday the Energy Ministry made "evidential submissions" to the CoE and is being represented by competent and experienced lawyers.
"The UNC continues to desperately struggle for relevance by grasping at every straw, whether real or imaginary."
McClashie told Newsday, "The OSH (Occupational Safety and Health) investigation report was submitted to the CoE. OSH is a division of the Ministry of Labour. The Minister of Labour does not have any specific expertise in this area. That expertise resides with the OSH."
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