Cabinet yesterday approved a new order changing the process for the appointment of a Commissioner of Police (CoP) which would be restricted to nationals.
However, Opposition Leader Kamla Persad-Bissessar said the matter could not be complete without parliamentary approval. Speaking at the post-Cabinet press conference at the Office of the Prime Minister, St Clair, Maxie Cuffie, Minister of Communications, said Cabinet agreed to the order yesterday and it would be communicated to the Police Service Commission, the organisation responsible for the appointment of a Police Commissioner and the Department of Personnel Administration.
Under the existing arrangement a foreign firm is used to select a shortlist of applicants for recommendation to the Police Service Commission. The PSC in turn will then submit the applicants to the Parliament for either approval or rejection.
Cuffie said: “The process now involves the appointment of a national of T&T.” He said the order “simplifies the process with the appointment of an appropriate local firm to handle the arrangement but keeping in mind the existing legislation to achieve that end.”
Cuffie said the change was in keeping with an election promise by the People’s National Movement (PNM) during the September 7 campaign.
“We feel that whoever holds the Office of Commissioner of Police should be a national of T&T,” he added. Cuffie said more details on the arrangement would be provided by Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi.
Al-Rawi could not be contacted by the T&T Guardian yesterday for clarification.
Cuffie said as soon as the process was confirmed by Cabinet it would be in effect. Cabinet normally confirms a decision one week after it is approved.
Persad-Bissessar, in response, said the appointment of a CoP could not be determined by a Cabinet Order.
“So just to announce an executive decision from the Cabinet is not sufficient. They need to bring it to the Parliament and we will see what happens there,” she added. She insisted that “it has to be a parliamentary decision as well, so we will await the decision by the Government and we will deal with it. It is not just for the Cabinet to say we are going to do this or that, these are matters to change the law.”
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In 2007, a new system was introduced which required a foreign firm to select applications for the post and for Parliament to approve or reject the list of nominees.
Under that system Canadians Dwayne Gibbs and Jack Ewatski were appointed Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner respectively. They resigned in 2012 and since August of that year Stephen Williams, who was deputy commissioner, has been given consecutive six-month acting appointments.