Done in darkness but will come to light

I am sure that the former Prime Minister will agree with us that people who break the law must pay the consequences. It is possible that the conviction against him may have been a blessing in disguise since it has exposed others who did not comply with the rulings of the Integrity Commission.

That is why we are calling on the authorities to charge all those who committed the same offence as Panday or who failed to declare their assets as required by law. This will help the country’s image here and abroad and demonstrate in no uncertain manner that the law applies to al.

The incarceration will ensure that more people abide by the law and not take it for granted. However, his imprisonment may give people the impression that he was singled out for punishment since more than 200 people who broke the law by failing to comply with the Public Life Act 2000 have not been arrested and charged so far.

CBTT agrees with Professor Ramesh Deosaran that judges and magistrates should also declare their assets and income in compliance with the Integrity in Public Life Act 2000. We wonder why the Judicial and Legal Services Commission (JLCS) is excluded from the scrutiny of the Joint Select Committee (JSC) of Parliament. We, therefore, support Deosaran’s call for section 66C of the Constitution to be dropped in order to bring the JLCS under the scrutiny of the JSC.

Those who don’t want to declare income and assets according to the Integrity in Public Life Act 2000 have something to hide and should not be encouraged to get into public life. CBTT wishes to emphasise that honesty is still the best policy and should be the most important criteria in electing people to political office. The same should apply to all those whom we appoint to administrative positions in our State Enterprises and Public Service.

I wonder how many politicians and others under the Integrity in Public Life Act 2000 had foreign bank accounts but failed to declare them in the past. I don’t wish to scare anyone but I must remind people that whatever is done in darkness will eventually come to light.