Griffith to TTPS: You don't need my input to investigate merit list issue

FORMER commissioner of police (CoP) Gary Griffith has described as disgraceful the words of acting CoP Mc Donald Jacob that the police need a statement from him in order to investigate what took place with the Police Service Commission (PSC) order of merit list.

In a letter to Director of Public Prosecutions Roger Gaspard on Monday, Griffith called for a probe into why the police failed to investigate his reports on the rescinding of the list. He claimed he wrote to Jacob on numerous occasions calling for him to launch a transparent investigation of the issues surrounding the merit list, but to date nothing has been done.

Asked about this at the launch of the National Operational Task Force (NOTF) at the Inter-Agency Task Force headquarters in Aranguez on Thursday, Jacob said the matter was investigated by a member of the Special Branch and was awaiting a report from Griffith.

“We would investigate, we looked at the report, analysed if there is something to investigate, then engage persons who made the report. What that will involve is interviewing and engaging the person who may have made the initial allegation.”

In response, Griffith said: “It is disgraceful that an acting CoP says he requires my assistance. You don’t need the assistance of Gary Griffith. It is there for the whole country to see. I was not there at President’s House.”

Griffith added that Jacob and was “playing smart with foolishness” and accused him of not wanting to go after government officials who may have broken the law. He said there were investigations in the past where the police had no witnesses or people making reports, but they were investigated “at break-neck speed.”

He questioned why Jacob decided to appoint Supt Allister Guevarro to investigate the claims he raised when he is also part of the Prime Minister’s security detail, and was appointed as part of a three-man team to investigate the February 16 islandwide blackout.

Dr Rowley has been accused by the Opposition of misbehaviour in public office for his alleged role in the rescinding of the merit list.

Rowley said he spoke with then PSC chairman Bliss Seepersad about concerns he had with the handling of firearm users licences being issued under Griffith’s watch. He denied he met with her and President Paula-Mae Weekes to discuss the issue.

The withdrawal of the list started a domino effect that led to collapse of the PSC, an attempt to impeach the President, and the restart of the process to select a police commissioner.