Mr Smith goes to Washington

A routine announcement last Monday of five commercial officers who will represent the Ministry of Trade and Industry internationally included one eyebrow-raising selection, Darryl Smith, former minister of sport.

The circumstances of Mr Smith's tumultuous end as a minister of government are partly formal, the fallout from the improper dismissal of an employee and the implied, widespread photographs and video featuring the former sport minister in an unflattering light.

At the end of an investigation into the matter, the Prime Minister stated simply that, "I fired Darryl Smith for interfering improperly in the public service."

Responding to questions about Mr Smith's appointment, Trade Minister Paula Gopee-Scoon stuck that line of procedural error, pointing out that the mistake was made by the permanent secretary while declining to comment on what she described as "insinuations."

Those insinuations were presumably clarified in a 2018 report produced by an investigating committee chaired by former permanent secretary Jacqueline Wilson, but has never been made public because of "procedural issues" in its compilation which were said to put it on shaky legal ground.

In an unseemly series of mismanaged moves, Mr Smith was said to have ordered the removal of the reason for the dismissal of a female member of his staff from her termination letter. That cost the government $150,000 for improper termination of employment.

Another procedural error by experienced public servants resulted in the legal gag on the official report, making Mr Smith's abrupt departure from public office even more untidy than it needed to be.

If Mr Smith has demonstrated in his screening interviews that he is the right man for this new job and Cabinet has faith in his capacity to represent this country in the US and Canada with appropriate dignity and gravitas, then the country at large should consider Cabinet's collective wisdom to be passport enough for the appointment.

But Cabinet, and the Prime Minister particularly, should be reminded of the second and third chances offered to Marlene McDonald who was given repeated blighs in the face of procedural error.

Between 2016 and 2019 Ms McDonald was sacked from senior government roles three times before being bypassed as a candidate in the 2020 election, effectively removing her from government.

It took more than three years for the PNM palate to finally lose its taste for the McDonald menu.

In August 2022, the DPP filed an indictment against her in the High Court, citing six counts of money laundering, conspiracy to defraud and misbehaviour in public office.

In granting Mr Smith a second chance to serve the public, the Trade Minister should exercise due diligence and offer appropriate support to ensure that he has the best possible opportunity to serve TT effectively.