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CCNTV6
  • 10 months ago
MP for Barataria/San Juan Saddam Hosein says the appointment of Junior Benjamin to act as top cop may be unconstitutional.


Here's more in this report
Transcript
00:00Speaking at a UNC pavement report in Faisabad last evening, MP for Barataria San Juan Saddam Hussein said,
00:07before parliamentarians cast their votes, there must be clarity on whether or not there's a vacancy in the office of the Commissioner of Police.
00:14Hussein told the audience that he received a letter with regards to the ongoing issue.
00:19We now have a letter which was only revealed to us about four days after this entire debacle.
00:27A letter dated the 31st of January, 2025, from the Police Service Commission to Mrs. Erla Harewood Christopher.
00:36And the letter reads, arrest and investigation into misbehaviour in public office.
00:42And the Police Service Commission is indicating that it has received a communication dated the 30th of January, 2025,
00:50from Deputy Commissioner of Police Intelligence and Investigation.
00:54Do you know who is that? That is Suzette Martin, stating that on the 30th of January, 2025,
01:00you were cautioned, informed that you are a suspect in an ongoing investigation into misbehaviour in public office,
01:07and were then informed that you were under arrest.
01:10He further noted that the Commission's letter stated that Erla Harewood Christopher should cease to report for duty
01:16and cease to discharge her duties as COP with immediate effect.
01:21Hussein pointed out that at the time the letter was issued, the COP was still in custody.
01:26This letter is critical because according to industrial law and industrial good practice relations,
01:34this letter neither said Erla has been suspended, it neither said that she was terminated,
01:43it did not say that you should proceed on administrative leave, it didn't buy out her contract.
01:50So is there a vacancy in the office of the Commissioner of Police?
01:54He also called on Prime Minister-in-Waiting Stuart Young to speak on the issue.
01:58Tonight, I want to call on Stuart Young to break his silence on Erla Christopher.
02:04It has been about four or five days now that this scandal has taken over the news cycle in Trinidad and Tobago,
02:12and we cannot hear from them.
02:14Hussein asked the question, who is overseeing what is taking place during this state of emergency?
02:20If according to the Police Service Commission in this letter, Erla Harewood Christopher is not the Commissioner of Police,
02:28that there are no Commissioner of Police since the 31st of January 2025,
02:33then who is regulating, who is doing the business of the office of Commissioner under a state of emergency?
02:40Sharla Kesto, TV6 News.
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