AG hits law bodies on CJ issue

The bodies, he said, had not fairly represented all the issues involved.

Jeremie said a statement issued by the Council of the Law Association on Wednesday was based entirely on a second-hand, hearsay newspaper report of the meeting between the Prime Minister and Chief Justice. The AG said no attempt was made to verify its accuracy or get the other side of the story, and the Law Association assumed the Prime Minister had acted illegally or unfairly.

Jeremie noted that the presidents of the Law Association, Russel Marti-neau SC, and Criminal Bar Associ-ation, Desmond Allum SC, are attorneys for Sharma.

He said neither body has seen fit to comment on the very grave threat to TT’s democracy and the rule of law suggested in the concerns of the Chief Magistrate.

Jeremie answered critics who said he was a political appointee, by saying that as AG and a lawyer, he has a duty to uphold the law and Constitution. “The honourable AG intends to ensure that the provisions of the Constitution are scrupulously followed and that all matters are conducted with transparency and integrity, at all times in the public interest.”