Dodgy IC resignation has Live Wire fuming… at himself!

Seriously, Tanty Kamla?! Seriously?!

There are a few scenarios that set off alarm bells immediately.

Jack Warner offering to provide a budget for any project, Tiger Woods hosting a bridal shower or Anil Roberts practising Spanish.

Photo: Former Sport Minister Anil Roberts.
Photo: Former Sport Minister Anil Roberts.

Add to that an Integrity Committee member resigning within hours of an indirect brush with Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

Mr Live Wire read the report that Dr Shelly-Anne Lalchan quit the Integrity Commission, just hours after the body terminated its investigation into “emailgate”, and promptly got angry at himself.

To fly into a self-righteous rage at the Prime Minister for the suspicious behaviour of regulatory bodies when her name pops up, is like walking in pouring rain and being upset about getting wet.

Let us be honest about our current predicament on this two island republic. How many Government Ministers could you shake hands with and feel confident about remaining with five fingers?

From the People’s Partnership’s swearing-in ceremony, when the Prime Minister allowed Jack Warner to keep his post as FIFA vice-president, to today, when she has undemocratically rid the Parliament of the Opposition Leader and refuses to call an election date, Persad-Bissessar has treated the spirit of the constitution with the same grace that Akon shows to dance partners.

Trinidad and Tobago has known its share of politicians who cross the street when Honesty is in the vicinity. It is easier to picture the Lady Prime Minister ordering a minion to knee Honesty in the groin.

Photo: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar (centre) and candidate Khadijah Ameen (left) during the UNC's unsuccessful campaign in Chaguanas West. (Courtesy Jyoti Communications)
Photo: Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar (centre) and candidate Khadijah Ameen (left) during the UNC’s unsuccessful campaign in Chaguanas West.
(Courtesy Jyoti Communications)

And God forbid if Transparency ever crossed their paths.

That brings us to the Integrity Commission.

There is no proof whatsoever that the Prime Minister coerced the nominally independent body to save her from the embarrassment wrought by deputy DPP Joan Honore-Paul’s rebuke.

Or that the Integrity Commission’s statement was released in a timely fashion so as to overshadow Friday’s “Private Members Day”—the last before Parliament is dissolved—in which the Opposition plans to debate the Petrotrin scandal.

Or that the IC’s decision to point out the potential perils for an internal whistleblower in a letter to the Prime Minister’s lawyer, Israel Khan, might have actually been a warning to Lalchan—“any member who discloses or attempts to disclose to any person other than a person to whom he is authorised under the Act, any information or evidence received by the Commission under this Part, shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine of $250,000 and to imprisonment for five years.”

Photo: Dr Shelly Anne Lalchan (front row, right) sits alongside Integrity Commission chairman Justice Zainool Hosein and the rest of the team. (Courtesy Integrity Commission)
Photo: Dr Shelly-Anne Lalchan (front row, right) sits alongside Integrity Commission chairman Justice Zainool Hosein and the rest of the team.
(Courtesy Integrity Commission)

That’s right. An Integrity Commission whistleblower will be fined a quarter of a million dollars and jailed for five years. Whereas Lawrence Duprey only had to pay a $2,000 fine for failing to show at a CLICO enquiry to answer for his behaviour, which nearly took down the country’s economy and threatened to rob thousands of citizens of their life savings.

This is not just the land of the steel band and hummingbird. It also the land of the smart man and cunning girl.

So, no, there is no proof of wrongdoing here. Yet.

But there is that nagging feeling in your gut. Like when someone mentions that Sacha Singh was at your husband’s company retreat, Darren Millien texts with an idea for your money or you spot DJ Lurbz pulling out of your driveway.

If it waddles, quacks and is fond of ponds. Chances are you have just been ducked!

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About Mr. Live Wire

Mr. Live Wire is an avid news reader who translates media reports for persons who can handle the truth. And satire. Unlike Jack Nicholson, he rarely yells.

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57 comments

  1. ^^^^ “Let us be honest about our current predicament on this two island republic. How many Government Ministers could you shake hands with and feel confident about remaining with five fingers?”

    Lasana; that was not nice!!

  2. Rampant curruption is the root cause of many systems in our country literally going to the dogs. The checks and balances we put in place must be enforced to ensure equity, all must be held accountable for their actions according to the law. I watch in disgust daily where money is the key to justice, and those in possession of heafty pockets seem to circumvent penalties and convictions. And in the same breath beyond the tape can post a picture of a young black man wanted by the police for playing loud music. Sadly this system, this illusion of democracy is the brand on sale in our sweet TandT.

  3. You need to pen another one!

  4. Do we have a president? Or jus sm one living off taxpayer’s an enjoying all the perks . . Time to abolish these two offices . A total waste of time and $$ !

  5. Every thing happens for a reason . More to come out . Not suprised one bit .

  6. The statements made by the IC about EmailGate being closed should now be retracted.

  7. When news surfaced that the IC cleared the PM and those in her cabinet involved in EmailGate I took a step back to assess the situation. The way the IC revealed its findings or lack thereof was the first red flag, i.e sending a letter to the PM’s lawyer, why only him? Then that same night gov’t MPs appeared on tv asking for the opposition leader to resign. What was a shocker to me is the fact that the PM herself attended the town hall meeting organized by tv6 which was televised live on Wednesday night. It seems as though she went to tv6’s meeting just to get the point across about EmailGate and her victory. Why was the PM trying sooo hard I asked myself, why?

    Then news of resignations of 2 officials in the IC. The IC closed the case knowing the investigation was not complete and other members of the IC only became aware of the IC judgement only after the letter was sent to the PM’s lawyer? Police saying that their investigation is not complete. Let’s not forget the PM’s attempt to have the deputy dpp step down. It’s all happening so fast I can’t keep up. Something is definitely not right here.

  8. Ventour says that the matter was not investigated sufficiently. Well yes

  9. With Justice Ventour now resigning, i am ready to march in protest of interference by the government not only in the Integrity Commission but also seemingly in the Justice system. Evil prospers when good people (men and women) do nothing… too many good people sitting and giving tacit approval to nonsense…

  10. I really wish the police would wrap up their investigation. It’s starting to look more and more like they are afraid of what they have found so far. And with elections round the corner it might cause too much instability if say the PM and her cabal have criminal charges to answer. I can’t even fathom the scenario if this was a possible outcome. So it seems to me like the TTPS will stall as much as they can hoping that a new government is in place and then it will be safe to “conclude” their 2 year investigation. No matter how you slice it Emailgate is the most frightening thing to happen to this country. Only the uneducated UNC (think of the yellow jersey people who turn up at the Hyatt and don’t know what they supporting ) are convinced that the whole thing was a fake. Speaking of fake… If only there was someone with powers we didn’t know he had!

    • I think criminal charges will eventuate hence the offices of the DPP and TTSP are being carefully thorough with their investigations.
      One does not need a PhD in rocket science to logically conclude from Justice Ventour’s clarity in his stated reasons for removing himself from Zainool Hosein’s news release clearing Kamla and “&&” on the one hand; and the TTPS’ & DDPP’s obstinate position that they are covering a wider field of investigation, that they have found grounds of criminal malfeasance in the “Email-gate” fiasco.
      Now add to this Kamla’s and “&&” continued attempts to undermine the integrity of the investigations and so anger the US DOJ that they withdraw their assistance to T&T Central Authority (?) DPP and TTPS.
      It begs the question: What does Kamla have to lose by allowing the independent offices of these investigating authorities to do their work?
      She ain’t in no hurry to address any forensic audit of LifeSport or Larry HowHigh’s insider trading at FCB; so why? Why? Why?

  11. Jeremy, you and I could drink together. Add one to the independent cuscus.

  12. Not at all. Person loyal to one party have the ability to ignore the crap their party does while criticising the other party for doing the same thing. One example is Kamla hiring her sister and manning hiring his wife. PP supporters think Manning was wrong and Kamla did nothing wrong while PNM supporters thing Kamla was wrong while Manning did nothing wrong. Either way 700K lack the integrity to acknowledge both are suspect

  13. Jeremy Charles Maybe it’s the definition of performance that is screwy

  14. Sorry guys, out of 1 million registered voters 700k will vote for only one party regardless of performance. Until that number gets lower things won’t change. Perhaps in 3 generations.

  15. Lurbz pulling out of the driveway lol….

  16. Yea I mean, this is really sick and sad right now, I really don’t want to be in this country around elections you know, and bear in mind this is the same lady who proclaimed “victory” on the night of the Local Goverment elections depsite having her mandate reduced from 12 to 5. The funny thing is people thought Manning was a dictator lol, I not able anymore oui, my fear is that of she feels un-remorseful with what she has done so far, she will obviously gravitate to greater heights, a kid steals a cookies and don’t get caught, he’ll steal toys next, after that money, after that a car, but when your election system is held together by dividing the population on race, you can always count on base support no matter what nonsense you do :'(

  17. All reasonable points I think Gaiven. Sigh

  18. On point as usual. This article has a depressing tinge though. I’m left with a depressing feeling like our country is being run like a (by a ??) drug cartel and we are powerless against them. Before 2010 we always assumed that no matter who was in power…there’s always elections and they will be free and fair. That’s no longer a reasonable assumption. This Emailgate thing is not going away. But like Dana Seetahal’s murderer and the Section 34 mastermind we will never get the truth.

    • Don’t ever give up though. That annoyance we feel when things go wrong is the last thing we have.
      And they should not take citizens for granted and continue stalling with the election date.

  19. Ethical system was a manner of speaking as I described earlier that I felt we needed systems in place to adequately dealt with corruption. And that is all I meant by an “ethical system.”
    I believe the system can work. Or, at least, we ought to try to enforce our existing laws first.
    If anything, the new laws should only be to mandate use of the old laws with strict penalties and a clear line os responsibility.

  20. There is no such thing as an ethical system. Ethics is a behaviour that is ascribed to people in how they act. It is impossible to separate people from the organisation because people give organisations substance. All the systems in the world cannot save you if the people charged with giving the system substance act in an unethical manner.

    Having said that, it does not preclude the need to improve our system of governance. I would single out our institutional safeguards as being particularly weak and in need of revamping so that they can perform as they should without fear or favour.

    Again though, you still need the right people to take up the mantle to do what is necessary to safeguard our democracy and national interests.

  21. Why don’t they dissolve this institution always a baccanal there and no integrity.

  22. Ethical people might lose their way in systems that allow for corruption. And corrupt people might toe the line in ethical systems that severely punish crookedness.
    But I get your point. 😉

  23. Not disagreeing but ethical systems need ethical people to work effectively. To your point, I also believe many ethical people shy away from serving on these boards and committee because in some ways they see it as a charade of sorts.

  24. This is a country that hasn’t had an Integrity Commission board even complete its term in ages.
    I think the answer is a more ethical system not more ethical people. People tend to take liberties simply because they can. Not all people of course. But enough to make me wary about any supposedly clean party.
    I agree that there is no one answer. But I would focus on it from a different angle.

  25. I am saying there is no one answer. New people who are more ethical and more creative in a positive way can always help in my opinion

  26. I actually don’t believe new parties are the answer. Because I don’t believe the problem starts with the politicians. I think they start with us.
    We haven’t really attempted to hold them to account yet. So how are we sure they can’t do better? And how are sure that new politicians won’t repeat old sins?
    I rather civic groups that try to act as watchdogs as opposed to a bunch of new political parties.

    • How about a loud cry/demand for constitutional reforms!!! Real reforms. I have advocated for Manning and Panday to vow not to seek elected office again then sit in a room for as long as it takes to write the reform. And they must both agree to each amendment.

  27. Hmmmm. Let me see.. Fresh new independent parties with new ideas and more patriotic and ethical people have to be formed; citizens have to begin voting based on delivery of promises and ideals of individuals representing them and not mainly along racial or party lines; mobilization of concerned citizenry protests similar to what happens in communitiea when roads need to be paved. I am not advocating violence but you may recall the Arab Spring?? I could go on and on but it must start literally with the man and woman on the street.

  28. That’s a fair question there Brian Icecarnival Jordan. What are your thoughts?

  29. Brian, how do you envision such a demand would look? Specifically.

  30. Collectively, the politicians have enriched themselves and duped the citizenry. It’s easier to find government systems and units that are failing than those that are succeeding. By most measures, no one has addressed the societal ills with any degree of competence in any of the past or present administrations. It begs the question:When will we demand better leadership, improved governance and a truly reformed constitution that caters to twenty first century challenges and issues??

  31. The sad thing that might elude some people as this ridiculous game of musical chairs continue is that, if the PM and the PP are willing to chastise a public official for not doing their bidding (David West) getting rid of an Opposition Leader because they’re afraid of him (sorry have no other plausible excuses) trying to remove a DDPP because she had the guts to say “you can’t clear yourself if an investigation is still ongoing” and then supposed allegedly coerce the IC into ruling in your favour, so much so one of its member has resigned, what do you think will happen for the GE, huh??? Do you honestly think these people (and by these I mean the UNC and their cohorts) will demit office in a peaceful or legal fashion. I honestly think this is the first administration who will literally try to steal the elections (Florida 2000) if they thought Manning was a creeping Dictator, then Kamla has to be one of these beret wearing, salute her or die type of dictators. Because I am sorry if it pressures independent bodies, tries to get rid of the Opposition and can’t call an election date though her term ends in 3 days, she’s a DICTATOR

  32. Chances are we have just been ducked!

  33. About 15 years ago, Stevie Wonder wrote a song for the soundtrack of a movie called Bamboozled, Although his references in the song were about the Afro-American historical experience, I must say that in many cases the title of the song applies to us citizens of Trinidad & Tobago: we are a misrepresented people!
    Speaking of Stevie, I think some even more apt words of his for our feelings on this PP government are …
    But we are sick and tired of hearing your song
    Telling how you are gonna change right from wrong
    ‘Cause if you really want to hear our views
    “You haven’t done nothing”!

  34. IG chances are that you have been ducked too.
    Or maybe you have been sheeped with wool over your eyes.
    Not my sweet tnt.

  35. Well I’m impressed. Love it, right on point. All that was borne in the dark is seeking to reveal itself in the light.

  36. With this band of misfits a writer could never be out of material/ideas.

  37. Beter ask yourself Ian what are You going to do after Kamla loses in September. Lol.

  38. What is Mr. livewire going to do after Kamla wins in September? He should start thinking about his future.

  39. Like when someone mentions that Sacha Singh was at your husband’s company retreat, Darren Millien texts with an idea for your money or you spot DJ Lurbz pulling out of your driveway. LMAO

  40. When i heard about the IC pronouncement i knew something was afoot smh

  41. A land of smart man and cunning girl…whoa! I see yuh real vex

  42. All of Trinidad and Tobago SHALL hold its electorate ABSOLUTELY ACCOUNTABLE whether, PPP, PNM, UNC, DLP, ILP, COP, NJAC, or another. Trinidad and Tobago cannot afford to have any kind of regular irregularities and integrity citations levied against it. We are at a point where we do not need an outside agency to downgrade our status, we have already done that ourselves; everyone, even the littlest of conscious ones senses and speaks of our extreme dilemma and chaos. We are too small for such a sizable and disproportionate negative representation of things that ought to be true and good and right for its people and landscape. Things are happening in the U.S. that seem to speak to similar behaviors but that land is big and each State’s situation unique to its confines. But, if someone belches in Toco, someone in Fullarton can point out the culprit. There is no epicenter in Trinidad and Tobago if an earthquake hits – we are the epicenter. We have to be smarter with our ways, truer to our causes, better with especially, our long-term decision-making, more persevering in the planning of our children’s future – how shortsighted can we get? One hundred bad dollars earned results in ten thousand dollars in repairs. Preparation and care extensions for a sustainable future are far less costly than reparation of a neglected, same. Maybe, we can reverse the trendy citation that is designed to help us make sounder decisions, namely, What Would God Do (WWGD) and internalize, with the question, “Would God do what I am doing?” Please leaders, let us set aside our win-at-all-cost ways and put our children, country, and Creator first.

  43. Hey Lasana,

    Great article, but one serious mistake…the $2,000 fine against Lawrence Duprey for his refusal to attend the Colman Commission was likely never paid since that is the official fine…I have heard no reports that anybody was actually charged for that offence…

    Three other offenders in that regard were Danny Montano, Conrad Enill and Mariano Browne…

    We are all in for a very disturbing time…

    Thanks for the wicked humour!

    Afra

  44. I am fuming at every single person who voted in this ridiculous excuse for a political party and political leader…sorry…it will take me a while before I can be happy with you again….but come September 24 (?) I could get really happy….if the right thing happens….and Keith Rowley becomes our next PM….but seeing the way the wind is blowing these days…looks like those liars in parliament might just have some tricks up their sleeves to allow them to stay there with this creeping dictatorship…wait….that sounds familiar…it is also wrong…because there’s no creeping anymore…just creeps running away with our treasury, squandering our natural resources, laughing in the face of democracy and probably laughing at the minions who voted for them too, because they don’t care about anyone but themselves and their friends. Then again, minions don’t need much to be happy so they probably don’t care…i keep saying, is there nothing that can be done to stop this mad woman?

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