Dhanpaul continues to serve as Finance Minister

Finance Minister Vishnu Dhanpaul can continue to serve in his post following the dissolution of Parliament on March 18, as he was appointed as a senator the day before, when he was sworn in by the President.

Parliament was dissolved after Prime Minister Stuart Young called a snap election for April 28, a day after he and his cabinet, including newcomer Dhanpaul, took the oath of office on March 17.

Via a series of WhatsApp messages to Newsday, a source said the Parliament received Dhanpaul’s instrument of appointment from the President.

The source said Dhanpaul was appointed under Section 40 (2)a of the Constitution, which says, “(2) Of the thirty-one Senators, (a) sixteen shall be appointed by the President acting in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister.”

Initially, questions were raised about Dhanpaul’s appointment as there was a concern he was not a senator, as Section 76(3) of the Constitution says, “The Ministers, other than the Prime Minister shall be such persons as the President, acting in accordance with the advice of the Prime Minister, shall appoint from among the members of the House of Representatives and the Senators.”

The legitimacy of Dhanpaul’s appointment was also questioned due to the fact that Parliament was dissolved as of midnight on March 18, as Section 57 of the Constitution says, “No member of either House shall take part in the proceedings of that House (other than proceedings necessary for the purposes of this section) until he has made and subscribed before that House the oath of allegiance, so, however, that the election of a Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and the election of a President of the Senate and Vice-President of the Senate may take place before the members of the House of Representatives, or the members of the Senate, as the case may be, have made and subscribed such oath.”

The source reminded that usually after elections, ministers in both Houses are appointed and may function for weeks before Parliament first sits, as it is the President who makes the appointments.

Dhanpaul was sworn in on March 17 at President’s House, St Ann’s. He was a former permanent secretary in the Finance Ministry. Speaking to media, he said he worked with many former finance ministers of all political hues (PNM, UNC and NAR) since Wendell Mottley in 1991. He retired in 2021.

He was TT’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and is currently a member of the evaluation committee.

The position was previously held by Colm Imbert, who served in that capacity for ten years. Imbert is now Minister of Public of Utilities.