Opposition MP Prakash Ramadhar says the next Commissioner of Police must be one that the entire country has confidence in and must not be a political stooge.
Ramadhar was speaking during Wednesday’s motion in Parliament.
The former minister questioned whether the newly proposed process held to the principles of transparency and accountability.
He said in the past there had been allegations of the police being used as political tools and gave examples of voter padding in the early 2000s as well as a botched raid on the home of former UNC minister and MP Sadiq Baksh.
Ramadhar said the new process that is attempting to be instituted guts out the oversights that the independent Police Service Commission must have in the process of selecting the Commissioner of Police.
“If we should allow this to go forward, it is to subvert the powers of the commission. Why do you want to do this?” Ramadhar asked.
He said the unnecessary efforts to undermine the commission was dangerous.
“The commission had a step-by-step control and oversight of everything the firm did. With this new process, once the job is given to this firm hands off they could do what they want in silence and certainly in darkness. That is a dangerous thing,” Ramadhar said.
“If you want at the end of a selection process to choose a red poppy you just put four red poppys on the list. This new possibility goes against the grain of transparency.”
He said this could not be allowed to happen as the new Commissioner of Police must have the moral authority that he is above reproach and was not put their at the behest of political interference.
“The removal of certain oversight responsibility from the Police Service Commission is a dangerous thing for the country,” he said.
Ramadhar was supported by an earlier contribution made by Opposition MP Bhoe Tewarie.
Tewarie said if there was a situation where there was doubt about whether the process was fair and open and transparent and you have doubt on whether the process is controlled by the political directorate, or that the outcome has been predetermined then citizens were dealing with a situation that was troubling for the democracy in this country.
“I am raising the issues of the doubts, opportunity for control of the outcome, politicisation and I think it is something that is serious in the country,” Tewarie said.
He said he agreed the appointment of the commissioner was an urgent matter and needed to be dealt with expeditiously but it must also be dealt with properly. (KC)