UNC activist Ravi Balgobin Maharaj has served a pre-action protocol letter on the Integrity commission, over its decision not to take action against Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, for omitting to disclose his purchase of a townhouse in Tobago in 2019.
Maharaj, via the letter sent on August 3rd, contends the commission acted unlawfully by ending its investigation into a complaint brought to it against the PM.
The pre-action letter included correspondence sent to San Juan/Barataria MP Saddam Hosein, who in December 2021, lodged a complaint to the commission over the Prime Minister’s purchase of a townhouse in the Inez Gate development, Shirvan Road, Tobago.
On June 29, the commission wrote to Hosein. It admitted that “(after) an examination of the complaint and the commission’s assessment of the matter, it was determined that there may have been breaches of the Integrity in Public Life Act.
However, the commission said having investigated these potential breaches, and while the Prime Minister did “omit” to disclose the purchase of the townhouse, “there was no criminal offence and accompanying sanction within the statutory boundaries of the Act, regarding such an omission and therefore, no action can be taken by the commission pursuant to section 34(7) of the IPLA in this regard.”
The commission said the act required that a false declaration is “knowingly” made and based on the evidence, it was of the view that Rowley did not “knowingly provide false information” in his declaration.
The commission also said its investigation did not reveal that a “discount” in the purchase of the townhouse was connected, directly or indirectly, with the performance of the prime minister. It also said that discount was not contrary to the act.
“Accordingly, the commission has decided to terminate the investigation into the complaint…,” the commission said, adding it had the power to do so when satisfied there are insufficient grounds for continuing an investigation.
Maharaj, however, wants answers from the commission.
He wants to see a statement of reasons “explaining why the commission decided not to take any further action in this matter against Dr Rowley in light of its findings…”
Maharaj has also instructed his attorneys to challenge the commission’s decision to terminate the investigation and “ascertain whether there was any corruption in the purchase of two townhouses at a substantial undervalue from a friend and financier of the PNM, who received substantial multi-million-dollar contracts…in both central government and via the Tobago House of Assembly.”
The letter named other purported purchasers of townhouses in the Inez Gate development.